.LIBRARY 


UNIVERSITY   OF   CALIFORNIA 

GIFT  OR 


Received 
A  a-  ess  ions  No  . 


88<6  . 


A  CHRISTIAN   PAINTER  OF  THE 
NINETEENTH  CENTURY 


RIVINGTONS 
JUttBon  Waterloo  Place 


Trinity  Street 


A   CHRISTIAN    PAINTER 


€&e  jRineteentfr  Centurg 


BEING   THE 


LIFE    OF  HIPPOLYTE   FLANDRIN 


BY  THE  AUTHOR  OF 
"A  DOMINICAN  ARTIST,"  "LIFE  OF  S.  FRANCIS  DE  SALES,' 


POTT,   YOUNG,    AND    COMPANY 
COOPER   UNION,    FOURTH    AVENUE 


MDCCCLXXV 

y 


-7 

^J 


Prefatorg  H3ote 

T  CANNOT  commit  this  little  book  to  the  publi  c 
without  expressing  gratitude  to  the  kindness 
and  courtesy  of  M.  le  Vicomte  Henri  Delaborde, 
who  has  so  freely  given  me  the  benefit  of  all  his 
resources  in  connection  with  Flandrin's  works  and 
life.  If  these  pages  should  lead  to  his  friend  and 
countryman  being  better  known  among  ourselves, 
and  to  his  noble  example  being  followed,  it  will, 
I  know,  more  than  reward  him. 


Contents 


PAGE 

HIPPOLYTE  FLANDRIN'S  BIRTH 2 

FAMILY 3 

ASPIRATIONS  TO  ART 4 

ADMITTED  TO  THE  LYONS  SCHOOL  OF  ART        ...  6 

GOES  TO  PARIS            8 

HUMBLE  LIFE  IN  PARIS n 

BECOMES  A  PUPIL  OF  INGRES 14 

FIRST  PICTURE 19 

ACADEMY  COMPETITION 20 

STUDIES 23 

ESCAPES  CONSCRIPTION 27 

REVOLUTION  OF  1830 30 

AUGUSTE  FLANDRIN 32 

STUDY  FOR  THE  CONCOURS        ......  38 

CHOLERA 46 

OBTAINS  THE  ROMAN  STUDENTSHIP          ....  54 

AMBROISE  THOMAS 60 

JOURNEY  TO  ROME 61 

THE  FRENCH  ACADEMY 65 

WORK  IN  ROME 68 

EASTER  DAY 76 


CONTENTS. 


OVERBECK 78 

DEATH  OF  DEROCHES 80 

PAUL  JOINS  HIPPOLYTE  AT  ROME      .  81 

SUFFERS  FROM  HIS  EYES 85 

M.  INGRES  GOES  TO  ROME 86 

FLANDRIN  TRAVELS  IN  ITALY 91 

PICTURE  OF  S.  CLAIR 97 

FROM  THE  PURGATORIO IOO 

OUR  LORD  BLESSING  THE  CHILDREN         ....  104 

FEVER .106 

GOES  TO  FLORENCE 114 

DEATH  OF  FLANDRIN'S  FATHER 119 

NAPLES .        .  122 

RETURN  TO  FRANCE                                                        .  129 

To  PARIS I3I 

DISAPPOINTMENTS 134 

ARY  SCHEFFER J41 

Louis  LAMOTHE 15° 

OPERATION  FOR  SQUINTING 15 1 

PAINTS  THE  CHAPEL  OF  SAINT  SEVERIN    ...  153 

MADE  MEMBER  OF  THE  LEGION  OF  HONOUR     .                .  154 

PAINTS  THE  CHATEAU  DE  DAMPIERRE      .        ...  157 

DEATH  OF  AUGUSTE  FLANDRIN  158 

MARRIAGE  WITH  MADLLE.  ANCELOT        .  159 

PAINTS  SAINT  GERMAIN  DES  PRKS 161 

BIRTH  OF  A  SON 163 

DAILY  LIFE l66 

FLANDRIN  AT  COURT  ....  .167 

PAINTS  SAINT  VINCENT  DE  PAUL 169 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

PAINTS  S.  PAUL  AT  NIMES 171 

REVOLUTION  OF  1848 172 

CRITICISM  OF  BISHOP  PLANTIER 176 

DISTURBANCES  IN  LYONS 180 

FRESCOES  IN  SAINT  VINCENT  DE  PAUL      ....  183 

REST  IN  THE  SOUTH 185 

PAINTS  THE  CHURCH  AT  AINAY         .  -              .        .        .  188 

NAVE  OF  SAINT  GERMAIN  DES  PRES          ....  189 

VISIT  TO  ARLES 191 

JOURNEY  TO  BLOIS 192 

To  ALLEVARD 195 

INVITATION  TO  COMPIEGNE 197 

M.  INGRES  NOMINATED  SENATOR 198 

JOURNEY  TO  BELGIUM 201 

FLANDRIN  RECEIVES  THE  PRUSSIAN  ORDER  OF  MERIT     .  205 

GOES  TO  ITALY 206 

ARRIVAL  AT  ROME 214 

PRESENTATION  TO  THE  POPE 220 

ANNOYANCE  AT  CHANGES  IN  THE  ACADEMY      ...  224 

FAILURE  OF  HEALTH 232 

PERE  BESSON'S  PAINTINGS 236 

EXPEDITION  TO  OSTIA 238 


SEIZED  WITH  SMALLPOX 


241 


DEATH 242 

TRIBUTE  OF  M.  BEULE 243 


A  CHRISTIAN  PAINTER  OF  THE 
NINETEENTH   CENTURY. 


ALL  those  who  are  interested  in  Modern  Art, 
especially  those  who  look  upon  mural  decora 
tion  as  one  of  its  noblest  objects,  and  who  desire  to 
see  the  walls  of  our  churches  an  abiding  lesson  to  the 
eye  of  the  faithful,  are  acquainted  with  the  name  of 
Hippolyte  Flandrin,  and  more  or  less  with  his  works. 
But  among  the  numbers  who  have  admired  and 
studied  his  paintings  in  Saint  Germain  des  Pres,  Saint 
Severin,  or  Saint  Vincent  de  Paul,  at  Paris,  the  Church 
of  Saint  Paul  at  Nimes,  or  that  of  Ainay  at  Lyons,  few 
probably  know  anything  concerning  the  painter,  or  the 
mind  which  prompted  that  skilful  hand  to  trace  the 
devout  imaginations  which  have  won  for  Flandrin  the 
name  of  the  Fra  Angelico  of  our  day. 

It  was  not  a  life  of  great  events,  or  strange  pictur 
esque  combinations  like  some  of  the  early  masters, 
whose  lives  seem  when  read  as  artistic  as  their  works ; 
neither  was  he  a  devot,  to  be  held  up  as  an  unusual 

A 


HIPPOLYTE  FLANDRIN. 


and  specially  edifying  instance  of  artist-piety.  Never 
theless,  there  was  that  about  Hippolyte  Flandrin's  life 
which  makes  it  worthy  of  record,  and  interesting  to 
those  who  take  pleasure  in  tracing  a  true,  honest, 
manly,  straightforward  character  through  the  toils  and 
difficulties  which  inevitably  beset  every  life  lived  with 
a  clear,  noble,  deliberate  intention  of  working  out  a 
vocation  in  God's  Service,  be  that  vocation  what  it 
may.  And  the  purity  and  truthfulness  and  manliness 
with  which  Flandrin  followed  his  artist's  vocation, 
— bearing  up  stedfastly  under  the  pressure  of  poverty 
and  disappointment,  and,  while  without  any  special 
profession  of  piety,  cleaving  with  a  true  resolute  heart 
to  the  plain  duties  of  a  Christian  life,  come  what 
might, — are  a  deep  lesson  and  encouragement  to  all, 
most  particularly,  one  would  imagine,  to  the  nume 
rous  brotherhood  of  artists  following  in  his  steps  ;  and 
as  assuredly  many  of  them  share  in  his  poverty  and  his 
trials,  may  not  his  example  help  some  of  them  to 
share  in  that  which  was  his  strength  as  a  man  and  his 
inspiration  as  an  artist,  namely,  his  pure  life  and  his 
God-fearing  ways  ? 

Hippolyte  Flandrin  inherited  a  love  of  art.  In 
early  days  his  father  too  had  aimed  at  becoming  a 
painter;  and,  after  a  few  years  spent  in  a  house  of  busi 
ness,  he  threw  up  his  occupation,  ambitiously  hoping 
to  become  an  historical  painter  in  what  was  known  at 


BIR TH  AT  L YONS. 


that  time  as  the  School  of  Lyons,  his  native  place. 
But  either  the  father's  talent  was  inferior  in  its  kind, 
or  it  could  not  contend  against  the  disadvantages  of 
a  tardy  education,  and  Flandrin  the  elder  soon  found 
that,  if  he  wished  to  find  bread  for  the  seven  little 
mouths  which  were  gathered  around  him  to  be  filled, 
he  must  take  to  the  less  dignified  line  of  miniature 
painting,  and  indeed  reckon  himself  fortunate  when  by 
that  he  could  eke  out  the  scanty  means  which  alone 
he  possessed  besides — consisting  of  the  rent  of  a  small 
house  in  the  Rue  des  Bouchers  at  Lyons,  which  he 
shared  with  his  sister.  The  fourth  of  the  hungry  birds 
in  the  Flandrin  nest  was  Hippolyte,  born  March  23, 
1809.  Both  his  brothers  were  art  aspirants  too,  and 
the  younger  one,  Paul  Flandrin,  still  living,  is  rec 
koned  as  one  of  the  first  landscape  painters  in  France. 
Their  mother  had  experienced  a  good  deal  of  the  un 
certainty  and  depressing  hopelessness  of  a  disappointed 
artist's  career  ;  and  though  she  resigned  herself  some 
what  reluctantly  to  its  adoption  by  her  eldest  son 
Auguste,  five  years  older  than  Hippolyte,  when  it  be 
came  a  question  of  the  younger  boys  following  the  same 
unprofitable  calling,  the  good  house-mother  fairly  set 
her  back  to  the  wall,  refusing  to  listen  to  any  sentiment 
or  artistic  pleading,  and  declared  that  one  painter  was 
quite  enough  in  the  family, — it  was  enough  to  have  one 
son  the  victim  of  uncertainty,  caprice  and  disappoint- 


MILITARY  FEVER. 


ment :  she  would  have  no  more  forsooth !  No,  indeed  ! 
Hippolyte  should  not  be  tempted  into  the 'studio — he 
should  be  apprenticed  to  an  honest  silk  merchant ;  and 
as  to  little  Paul,  he  should  set  to  work  at  the  tailor's 
trade ;  and  the  shop  where  he  was  to  learn  his  busi 
ness  was  forthwith  fixed  upon.  Meanwhile,  probably 
owing  to  the  scanty  purse  at  home,  the  boys  were  not 
sent  to  school,  and  having,  in  common  with  so  many 
of  their  age,  a  hot  military  fever  upon  them,  Hippolyte 
and  Paul  spent  most  of  their  time  in  close  attendance 
upon  the  regiments  quartered  in  Lyons.  Not  a  march 
or  parade  did  they  miss; — the  barrack  and  the  champ 
de  manoeuvre  were  both  studied  with  absorbing  interest; 
and  when  they  came  home  from  their  day's  pursuit, 
the  evenings  were  spent  in  drawing  all  they  had  seen, 
one  helping  another  in  rendering  detail  accurately ;  and 
happy  the  day  was  to  them  when,  by  some  fortunate 
chance,  any  military  illustrations — lithographic  or  en 
graved — fell  into  their  hands  as  a  supreme  authority. 
Hippolyte's  military  ardour  never  departed.1  Later  on 
he  was  fully  prepared,  in  case  of  war  breaking  out,  to 
enter  the  Garde  Mobile ;  and  one  of  the  first  works 
which  brought  him  any  remuneration — after  all  it  was 
only  thirty-five  francs ! — was  the  portrait  of  a  gen 
darme,  painted  soon  after  his  arrival  in  Paris. 

1  In  the  Journal  of  his  last  days  in  Rome,  Flandrin's  admira 
tion  for  and  interest  injiis  country's  soldiers  comes  out  strongly. 


FIRST  ASPIRA  TIONS.  5 

At  this  time  the  boys  had  no  higher  aim  than  to 
imitate  Horace  Vernet,  or  Charlet,  and  their  battle- 
pieces,  their  field-days,  parades  and  military  scenes 
acquired  a  certain  reputation  for  the  "  petits  Flandrin," 
somewhat  to  their  mother's  dismay,  who  dreaded 
nothing  so  much  as  to  see  them  led  astray  by  the 
pernicious  snare,  as  she  believed  it  to  be,  of  an  artist's 
life.  But  in  vain  poor  Madame  Flandrin  pleaded  the 
cause  of  tailoring  and  silk  mercery, — her  sons  found 
a  powerful  advocate  on  their  side,  who  succeeded 
in  silencing,  if  not  in  convincing,  their  mother.  In 
1821,  when  the  boys  were  eleven  and  twelve  years  old, 
the  sculptor  Foyatier  came  to  Lyons,  and  renewed 
his  acquaintance  with  the  Flandrin  family.  He  was  a 
living  witness  against  the  maternal  advocacy;  for 
eighteen  years  ago,  Foyatier — now  a  successful  artist, 
established  in  Paris,  and  on  his  way  at  the  actual 
moment  to  Rome, — this  same  sculptor  had  come 
eighteen  years  before  from  the  country  village  where 
his  previous  life  had  been  spent  herding  sheep,  and 
had  induced  a  vendor  of  statuettes  (supplied  chiefly  to 
religious  houses)  to  take  him  as  an  apprentice,  and 
from  this  humble  beginning  he  had  advanced  to  his 
present  position.  Foyatier  found  no  difficulty  in  con 
vincing  the  father  and  sons  that  the  latter  would  do 
well  to  despise  the  prospects  of  trade  and  follow  the 
leadings  of  art ;  and  even  the  prudent  mother  was  not 


FIRST  EDUCA  TION. 


invulnerable  to  the  argument  of  personal  success,  and 
the  prestige  of  an  homme  arrive,  which  gave  force  to 
Foyatier's  words.  He  pleaded  and  argued  so  success 
fully,  that,  before  he  went  on  to  Italy,  he  saw  the 
two  little  fellows  installed  as  pupils  in  a  studio  directed 
by  a  painter  named  Magnin,  and  a  better-known 
artist,  the  sculptor  Legendre-He'ral.  And  so  the 
boys  were  launched  upon  the  sea  of  art,  and  for  a 
while  the  skies  were  clear  and  the  sunshine  cheered 
them.  Hippolyte  studied  both  from  the  antique  and 
from  the  living  model,  and,  still  aiming  to  become  a 
painter  of  battle-fields,  he  was  encouraged  in  that  line 
by  his  masters,  who  looked  approvingly  upon  the 
sketches  of  military  subjects  which  he  often  made 
from  nature  when  out  of  the  studio.  But  before  long 
Magnin  went  to  Italy,  where  he  died,  and  Flandrin, 
whose  ambition  was  whetted  by  what  he  had  already 
learned,  sought  and  found  admittance  into  the  ficole  de 
Saint  Pierre,  the  Academy  of  Fine  Arts  of  Lyons. 
Here  he  studied  for  seven  years  under  Re'voil,  then 
director  of  the  atelier,  and  a  diligent,  unwearied,  pains 
taking  study  it  was ;  supplementing  the  appointed 
hours  of  work  with  as  much  private  toil  as  he  could 
manage,  especially  the  study  of  animals — going  daily  to 
one  of  the  faubourgs  where  he  had  an  opportunity  of 
drawing  the  latter  from  the  life,  all  with  a  view  to  his 
supposed  vocation  in  the  military  line.  But  meanwhile 


EARL  Y  STRUGGLES. 


the  pressure  of  poverty  made  itself  heavily  felt  at  home, 
and  in  every  possible  way  the  two  boys,  who  were  the 
most  dutiful  and  affectionate  of  sons,  strove  to  lighten 
their  parents'  burden,  to  which  they  were  conscious  of 
adding  by  the  pursuit  of  their  dearly-loved  profession, 
instead  of  following  a  lucrative  trade.  It  is  touching 
to  find  them  striving  in  every  possible  way  to  earn  a 
few  sous ;  one  time  drawing  little  vignettes  for  the 
shops  where  cheap  pictures  are  sold,  another  time 
executing  lithography,  and  gladly  selling  a  stone  with 
twenty  finished  subjects  for  fifteen  francs,  even  design 
ing  rebuses  and  bonbon  cases  for  the  confectioner ; — 
anything  whatsoever  that  could  bring  in  but  a  handful 
of  grist  to  the  slowly  dropping  family  mill. 

Moreover,  there  was  another  object  for  which  sous 
and  centimes  were  to  be  scraped  together.  Of  course 
Paris  was  their  great  aim  and  aspiration  ;  the  paradise 
of  imagination,  where  Vernets  and  Davids,  Murillos 
and  Raffaeles,  and  all  the  treasures  of  art,  which  as 
yet  were  to  them  only  myths  or  faintly  shadowed 
forth  by  more  or  less  imperfect  engravings  and  litho 
graphs,  might  be  seen  and  worshipped  ;  the  world  of 
reality,  where  the  first  living  masters  might  be  found  to 
teach  willing  pupils  to  excel  themselves.  Yes,  to  Paris 
Hippolyte  and  Paul  Flandrin  intended  fully  to  go; 
but  how  were  the  funds  ever  to  be  obtained  for  carrying 
out  their  intentions  ?  Never  mind  !  their  hearts  were 


FLA  ADR  IN  GOES  TO  PARIS. 


in  it;  and  when  a  resolute  earnest  lad  sets  himself 
steadily  to  work  out  his  heartfelt  vocation,  somehow 
or  other  he  is  sure  to  do  it.  So,  little  by  little,  a  sum 
was  hoarded  up,  small  indeed,  but  sufficient,  as  the 
young  Flandrins  hoped  and  believed,  for  their  actual 
necessities,  and  therewith  they  made  the  important 
plunge  into  the  world.  It  was  a  humble  start,  for  the 
journey  alone  would  pretty  well  have  swallowed  up 
their  little  store  if  they  had  not  chosen  the  slow  but 
cheap  way  of  travelling,  and  walked  to  Paris.  Flan- 
drin's  own  boyish  account  of  the  great  event  is  the 
best  portrait  of  what  he  was  then  as  a  lad  of  twenty. 

"PARIS,  April  n,  1829. 

"  Mon  cher  Papa  et  ma  chere  Maman, — There  is  an 
end  to  all  your  anxiety ;  we  have  arrived  here  safe  and 
sound,  and  I  will  tell  you  all  about  our  journey.  I 
am  sure  you  have  thought  a  great  deal  about  us  all 
the  time,  but  not  more  than  we  have  thought  of  you. 
When  we  left  Auguste  at  Dijon,  sorrowfully  enough, 
we  took  the  high  road  to  Montbard.  So  far  we  had 
walked  over  a  vast  plain,  about  which  Auguste  is  sure 
to  have  told  you.  By  degrees  the  road  became  more 
desolate,  and  the  air  colder.  We  went  uphill  for 
three  hours ;  the  cheerful  villages  all  disappeared,  and 
we  went  between  two  woods  of  small  oak  trees,  till  at 
last  we  came  down  into  a  valley  very  like  Bugey — high 


TALE  OF  TRAVEL. 


rocks,  well  wooded  mountain  sides,  and  a  little  river 
in  the  bottom.  When  we  reached  the  opposite  side 
we  came  into  a  very  cold  wind,  which  soon  brought 
snow.  It  was  nearly  dark ;  we  tried  two  lonely  inns, 
but  they  could  not,  or  would  not,  receive  us,  and  we 
had  to  go  on  another  mile  to  an  inn,  where  we  did 
very  well  for  that  night.  The  next  day  was  splendid, 
but  a  hard  frost ;  we  slept  at  JMontbard,  a  little  town 
built  on  a  sort  of  mamelon.  I  saw  nothing  remarkable 
there  but  a  fine  crenelated  tower.  Here  the  weather 
changed,  and  rain  made  the  roads  horrid,  but  at  last 
we  struggled  through  them,  and  got  to  Tonnerre  to 
sleep.  That  was  our  fifth  day  from  Lyons.  The  sixth 
day  we  went  on  twelve  miles  to  La  Roche,  a  village 
near  Joigny,  in  perpetual  storms  of  wind  and  rain, 
against  which  we  had  no  means  of  defence  except 
this."  (Here  comes  a  sketch  by  Paul  of  the  two 
brothers  cowering,  half-sheltered,  under  a  tree,  with  a 
legend  beneath,  "Ah  si  la  maman  nous  voyait  la!" 
and  another,  in  which  they  are  both  squatting  under 
a  streaming  umbrella,  with  the  inscription,  "  a  defaut 
d'arbres").  "So  we  waited  patiently  for  a  pause 
in  the  storm,  talking  of  home  the  while.  The 
seventh  day  a  continuance  of  this  weather  induced  us 
to  go  as  far  as  Sens  in  a  carriage,  but  I  repented  this 
heartily,  for  I  was  tremendously  sick.  Sens  is  to  my 
mind  a  very  pretty,  clean,  cheerful  town,  and  the 


io  FIRST  IMPRESSIONS. 

cathedral  is  magnificent.  On  the  eighth  day  we  slept 
at  Moret,  just  on  the  borders  of  the  forest  of  Fontaine- 
bleau,  and  the  day  after  we  went  through  the  forest,  be 
ginning  to  find  that  we  were  nearing  Paris  by  the  good 
roads,  the  numerous  villages,  and  quantity  of  carriages. 
At  Fontainebleau  we  admired  the  grand  chateau ;  the 
eagles  are  still  all  crowned  with  laurels,  and  here  and 
there  some  fleurs  de  lys  appear.  Thence  we  went  to 
Rys,  only  six  miles  from  Paris,  and  the  next  day  we  got 
up,  eagerly  hoping  soon  to  see  it.  But  we  went  at  least 
five  miles 'without  seeing  anything.  However,  at  last, 
from  a  rising  ground,  we  saw  the  great  city,  and  were 
very  much  struck  with  the  ensemble  which  appeared ; 
the  domes  of  the  Invalides  and  Panthe'on,  the  towers 
of  Notre  Dame,  and  many  others.  But  when  we 
reached  the  city  nothing  astonished  us ;  on  the  con 
trary,  several  things  shocked  me.  I  thought  we 
should  have  been  obliged  to  make  our  entry  with 
flying  colours,  i.e.  open  umbrella ;  but  instead  of  that 
the  sun  broke  out,  and  the  weather  was  beautiful.  I 
must  tell  you  all  my  impressions  another  time ;  but  I 
have  already  seen  the  Vendome  Column.  Oh,  how 
fine  it  is  !  Our  love  to  Uncle  and  Aunt  Martin.  As 
for  you,  we  love  you  as  much  as  we  did  at  Lyons,  and 
Auguste  and  Caroline  too ;  we  forget  no  one.  Em 
brace  every  one  of  the  family  you  see  for  us." 

The  first  thing  was  to  find  a  dwelling-place  within 


FRUGAL  LIFE.  11 


the  compass  of  the  brothers'  very  small  means.  After 
some  toil  in  the  shape  of  lodging-hunting,  they  found 
an  unfurnished  room  in  the  Quai  de  la  Cite,  No.  13, 
on  the  fourth  floor,  which  seemed  to  the  young  men 
very  dear,  its  rent,  though  the  room  was  small,  being 
140  francs  for  the  year.  In  a  letter  to  his  father, 
Hippolyte  gives  an  inventory  of  their  furniture,  which 
is  soon  transcribed.  It  consisted  of  a  bedstead  with 
paillasse  and  mattress,  a  table,  two  chairs,  a  candle 
stick,  and  a  water-pot.  "  I  nearly  forgot  the  broom  ! " 
he  adds,  with  the  further  assurance  that  he  and  Paul 
kept  their  little  abode  "as  clean  and  tidy  as  possible." 
Their  manner  of  life  was  as  frugal  and  unsophisticated 
as  the  anxious  parental  hearts  which  brooded  over 
them  afar  could  have  desired.  "  We  get  up  at  five 
o'clock  and  go  out  for  a  whiff  of  fresh  air  in  the 
Luxembourg,  which  is  not  far,  and  then  at  six  we  set 
to  work.  At  eight  or  nine  we  breakfast.  Unfor 
tunately,  bread  was  never  so  dear  as  it  is  just  now. 
Then  we  work  till  six  in  the  evening.  Our  breakfasts 
cost  five  sous  each,  and  we  dine  for  fifteen  sous  apiece, 
which  makes  forty  sous  a  day  between  us.  We  feed 
at  a  very  clean  restaurant,  where  we  eat  the  simplest 
and  plainest  things  we  can  get." 

However,  the  brothers  could  not  always  achieve  even 
such  a  dinner  as  this,  and  it  not  unfrequently  hap 
pened  that  they  were  obliged  to  content  themselves 


12  A  TIGHT  FIT! 


with  three  sous'  worth  of  fried  potatoes,  bought  on  the 
Pont  Neuf,  and  divided  between  the  two  !  But  there 
was  no  grumbling,  no  craving  after  self-indulgence. 
The  two  strong  affections,  love  of  art  and  love  of  their 
parents,  made  that  impossible. 

"You  bade  us  not  run  into  debt,"  Hippolyte  writes  : 
"oh !  as  to  that  you  may  be  quite  easy !  I  would  rather 
make  the  greatest  sacrifices.  Be  certain  of  your  chil 
dren's  love.  Far  away  as  they  are,  they  will  do  nothing 
which  you  could  disapprove,  and  they  will  try  to  be  a 
comfort  to  you."  And  again,  on  February  5,  1830,  he 
says,  "You  bid  us  be  economical.  I  assure  you  we  are, 
for  we  do  not  spend  more  than  fifteen  or  sixteen  sous 
each  on  our  daily  food,  and  to  do  that  one  must  needs 
be  very  careful.  I  don't  think  that  since  we  came  here 
we  have  spent  one  sou  unprofitably.  Indeed,  we  feel 
too  strongly  how  much  sacrifice  you  make  for  your 
sons,  dear  mother,  in  the  money  you  send  us,  and  you 
may  be  certain  that  we  shall  husband  it  to  the  very 
uttermost." 

It  was  hard  work  to  make  both  ends  meet  never 
theless,  and  at  the  end  of  three  months  Hippolyte 
says,  "  In  spite  of  economy,  our  money  melts  fast;  we 
work  with  all  our  might  to  earn  something."  And  when 
Flandrin  the  father  contrived  with  difficulty  to  send 
a  hundred  francs,  hardly  saved,  to  his  boys,  Hippolyte 
wrote  warm  thanks,  adding,  "  I  am  afraid  you  must 


HOME  LOVE.  13 


have  pinched  yourself  to  send  it,  and  the  thought 
grieves  me.  Oh  !  if  only  my  longings  were  fulfilled, 
how  I  should  delight  in  being  able  to  help  you  !  But 
I  don't  get  on  as  I  should  like." 

His  home  affections  were  very  strong,  and  a  letter 
from  father  or  mother  was  one  of  the  greatest  delights 
that  could  gladden  the  young  students.  "  You  can't 
imagine  the  pleasure  with  which  we  get  your  letters," 
he  writes  (May  16,  1829).  "It  is  an  event  which 
cheers  us  up,  and  is  altogether  an  epoch  to  us."  And 
writing  to  his  brother  Auguste,  Hippolyte  says  :  "  I 
can't  describe  to  you  the  intense  longing  I  have  to  see 
and  hug  you,  as  well  as  le papa  et  la  maman.  Almost 
every  night  I  am  off  to  Lyons,  and  yesterday  I  was 
downright  cross  with  Paul  for  waking  me,  because  just 
then  I  was  embracing  you  all.  I  was  crying  for 
joy.  ...  Remember  that  we  agreed  to  pray  for  one 
another  every  night.  I  never  fail  to  do  so,  and  I  am 
quite  sure  our  poor  mother  never  fails  either.  She 
loves  us  so  dearly,  and  she  is  such  a  long  way  off ! 
Poor  father  and  mother,  your  children  are  all  scattered 
now  ! " 

But  the  passionate  home  love  tended  to  strengthen 
rather  than  diminish  the  other  affection,  which  cannot 
be  called  its  rival, — love  of  art.  The  original  pro 
gramme  of  the  two  brothers  had  not  been  carried  out. 
They  left  Lyons  with  an  introduction  from  Revoil,  the 


M.  INGRES. 


director  of  that  school  of  art,  to  Hersent,  as  also  a 
recommendation  to  the  same  master  from  General 
Paultre  de  la  Mothe,  then  in  command  at  Lyons,  who 
had  shown  a  kindly  interest  in  the  young  art  students. 
But  falling  in  with  a  brother-student,  Joseph  Guichard 
(now  Professor  at  the  School  of  Art  in  Lyons),  they 
learnt  that  whereas  he  too  had  started  with  introduc 
tions  to  Hersent,  he  had  been  so  impressed  with  the 
superior  merits  of  Ingres,  whose  pictures  he  had  seen 
in  the  Salon,  that  he  had  transferred  himself  to  that 
master's  instructions.  Hippolyte  was  impressed  by  his 
friend's  arguments,  and  partly  from  a  real  conviction 
that  Ingres  was  the  superior  artist,  partly  from  the 
natural  inclination  to  have  the  companionship  of  a 
compatriot  whom  he  liked,  he  gave  up  the  idea  of 
seeking  Hersent,  and  resolved  to  become  a  pupil  of 
Ingres. 

Writing  to  his  father  (April  14,  1829),  Flandrin 
assures  him  that  this  change  of  purpose  did  not  arise 
from  caprice.  "  First  of  all,"  he  says,  "  M.  Ingres  is 
reckoned  in  Paris  as  a  man  of  higher  talent  than  M. 
Hersent;  and  further,  his  school  is  much  better  go 
verned  and  quieter.  He  does  not  allow  the  detestable 
buffoonery  which  often  makes  it  impossible  for  the 
best  men  to  remain  in  a  studio." 

By  the  3oth  of  that  same  month  the  brothers  were 
established  in  M.  Ingres'  studio,  and  from  that  moment 


NEW  ART  VIE WS.  15 

Hippolyte  Flandrin  became  a  devoted  friend  and  ad 
mirer  of  one  whom  he  loved  as  a  man  and  admired  as 
an  artist.  Flandrin  had  to  make  almost  a  fresh  start, 
for  Ingres'  views  and  practice  in  art  were  very  different 
from  those  of  Revoil ;  but  he  was  not  self-conceited  or 
bent  upon  his  own  ideas,  and  he  soon  gave  up  all  his 
old  aspirations  to  become  a  painter  of  battle-fields  or 
the  like,  and  threw  himself  heart  and  soul  into  the 
higher  art-tone  of  his  new  master.  That  it  was  more 
his  natural  element  than  the  one  into  which  cir 
cumstances  had  originally  thrown  him  is  proved 
alike  by  his  works  and  his  character,  which,  even  in 
the  early  days  of  his  studentship,  impressed  those  he 
mixed  with  by  its  calm  earnestness, — the  farthest  re 
moved  from  what  was,  and  probably  is,  too  frequently 
the  tone  of  the  young  artist-world.  Throughout  his 
life  affection  and  respect  seemed  to  surround  Flandrin 
wherever  he  was  known,  his  gentleness  and  modesty 
exercising  a  marked  influence  even  over  those  who 
might  hardly  have  been  supposed  likely  to  appreciate 
them. 

"  Those  who  knew  Flandrin  in  his  student  days," 
says  his  friend,  the  Vicomte  Delaborde,  "  remember  a 
young  man  with  a  gentle,  dreamy  expression  of  almost 
mystic  character;  invariably  reserved  in  words,  and 
altogether  stamped  with  such  a  modest  nobility  of 
mind  and  manner,  that  one  felt  at  once,  after  a  fashion, 


16  A  MODEL'S  CRITICISM. 

overawed  by  his  modesty  and  attracted  by  his  sweet 
ness.  It  was  the  same  kind  of  influence  which  he 
exercised  a  little  later  at  Rome  on  all  around  him,  to 
which  a  remarkable  testimony  was  borne  in  her  own 
way  "by  a  woman  of  the  lower  orders,  who  spent  her 
life  as  a  model  to  the  students  of  the  Academy.  One 
day  this  woman  was  giving  vent  to  a  string  of  epigram 
matic  sayings,  vivid  and  glowing  as  her  southern  skies, 
and  dealing  out  slender  mercies  upon  the  personal 
appearance  and  manners  of  the  students, — the  ugliness 
of  one,  the  affectation  or  dandyism  of  another,  and  so 
forth ;  when  some  one  asked  why  she  bestowed  no 
criticism  on  Flandrin,  who  possessed  neither  regularity 
of  feature  nor  any  other  definite  personal  beauty? 
There  was  no  hesitation  in  her  reply  :  "  O  in  quanto 
a  lui,  pare  proprio  la  Madonna  ! " 

Such  critics  are  apt  to  be  truthful,  and  Flandrin's 
life  did  not  belie  the  Italian  peasant's  notion,  that 
"  handsome  or  ugly,  he  was  Madonna-like  in  purity 
and  truth."  The  young  artist  who  could  find  solace, 
in  his  life  of  struggle  and  privation  in  a  Parisian  garret, 
from  the  thought  that  the  home  circle  he  loved  was 
praying  for  him  amid  those  struggles;  whose  heart 
overflowed  in  love  for  his  parents  in  expressions  simple 
as  those  of  a  little  child,  notwithstanding  the  reserve 
his  habitues  remarked  in  him,  and  who  remained  faith 
ful  to  his  religious  duties  amid  all  the  temptations  of 


INGRES'  SCHOOL  OF  ART.  17 


an  artist's  career  in  Paris,  might  well  have  carried  an 
exterior  stamp,  separating  him  from  most  of  his  con 
temporaries  in  the  keen  sight  of  one  better  versed  in 
men's  ways  than  in  books.  If  there  were  more  artists 
in  whom  such  a  resemblance  could  be  traced,  perhaps 
\ve  should  have  more  pictures  of  a  high  standard  of 
religious  art  than  we  actually  find. 

Flandrin  speedily  attached  himself  to  his  master  with 
a  profound  admiration  and  respect,  both  as  an  artist 
and  a  man.  Ingres'  veneration  for  the  antique,  and 
his  real  science,  satisfied  Flandrin's  taste,  while  his 
abhorrence  of  all  that  is  merely  factitious  or  conven 
tional,  and  his  earnest  desire  to  promote  the  study  of 
nature,  and  to  express  and  characterise  her  truths  in 
all  their  beauty  and  reality,  satisfied  the  innate  truth 
fulness  and  simplicity  of  his  heart.  "  When  you  fail 
in  the  respect  you  owe  to  nature,  or  affect  to  correct 
her,  you  strike  a  blow  at  your  mother  herself,"  Ingres 
used  to  say  to  his  pupils;1  and  it  was  an  argument 
which  Flandrin  above  all  was  prepared  to  admit. 

"  The  empire  exercised  over  the  young  artists  who 
crowded  his  studio,"  says  Vicomte  Delaborde,  "  is  a 
fact  too  well  known,  and  established  by  the  amount  of 
talent  brought  to  light  beneath  that  powerful  influence, 

1  ' '  Quand  vous  manquez  au  respect  que  vous  devez  a  la  nature, 
quand  vous  pretendez  la  corriger,  vous  donnez  un  coup  de  pied 
dans  le  ventre  de  votre  mere." 

B 


1 8  FLANDRIWS  OWN  MIND. 

to  need  discussion.  And  to  say  that  Flandrin  received 
a  decisive  impulse  from  the  chief's  hand,  is  only  to 
reaffirm  what  everybody  knows,  and  what  the  disciple, 
when  himself  a  master,  acknowledged  more  heartily 
and  sincerely  than  any  one.  We  only  need  draw 
attention  to  the  important  element  in  the  results  which 
sprang  from  the  individual  qualities  of  the  pupil. 
Faithful  as  Flandrin  ever  was  to  the  teaching  and 
example  of  the  great  artist,  whose  chief  disciple  he 
would  scarcely  have  presumed  to  think  himself,  he  was 
no  less  faithful  to  his  own  bent,  no  less  ready  to  listen 
dutifully  to  the  inner  voice  which  guided  him.  While 
looking  upon  himself,  (as  he  did  in  all  good  faith  to  the 
end,)  as  absolutely  formed  by  M.  Ingres,  he  might  duly 
have  attributed  some  of  his  individual  merits,  revealed  as 
they  are  on  canvas  or  wall,  in  a  striking  combination 
of  science  and  inspiration,  to  the  resources  of  his  own 
imagination,  and  the  natural  elevation  of  his  own  mind. 
And  while  Flandrin  was  as  yet  occupied  only  in  trying 
his  strength  under  the  master's  eye,  seeking  progress 
in  the  strictest  obedience  at  his  work,  in  the  most 
scrupulous  abnegation,  somewhat  of  that  depth  of 
tender  feeling  and  grace,  which  were  later  to  shine 
forth  so  prominently,  already  appeared.  For  the 
moment  his  business  was  only  to  paint  studies  from 
life,  simple  academical  studies,  in  which  the  main 
point  seemed  to  be  the  imitation  of  nature,  according 


"  RE  CO  GNITION  OF  THESE  US."  19 

to  the  rules  laid  down  by  Ingres.  And  accordingly 
all  Flandrin's  efforts  were  devoted  to  this  end,  such 
works  of  his  earliest  years  as  we  possess  proving  the 
attention  and  precision  with  which  he  applied  the  pre 
cepts  he  received  to  a  due  rendering  of  the  realities 
before  him.  But  this  proves  too  that  he  was  endowed 
with  more  than  a  most  rare  faculty  of  assimilation.  If 
Flandrin  was  foremost  among  his  fellow-students  in 
skill  and  acquired  science,  he  was  no  less  foremost  in 
the  natural  serenity  of  his  style  and  the  instinctive 
grace  of  his  imagination.  Any  one  who  will  examine 
the  picture  (in  the  Ecole  des  Beaux  Arts)  which  won 
the  Roman  prize,  will  find  a  sure  promise  of  the  suc 
cess  which  ensued.  Notwithstanding  the  difference  of 
subject  and  the  local  conditions  in  either  case,  we  may 
fairly  affirm  that  those  qualities  which  are  fully  de 
veloped  on  the  walls  of  Saint  Germain  des  Pres,  Saint 
Vincent  de  Paul,  and  Saint  Paul  at  Nimes,  may  be 
found  in  germ  in  that  pagan  subject,  the  Recognition 
of  Theseus." ' 

This  picture  was  painted  during  a  time  of  no  small 
struggle  and  difficulty.  Ingres  wished  his  pupils  to  be 
admitted  into  the  Academy,  and  in  the  September 
following  their  arrival  in  Paris  we  find  Hippolyte 
writing  for  their  baptismal  registers,  and  announcing  to 

1  Lettres,  etc.  d"1  Hippolyte  Flandrin,  p.  23. 


20  THE  "  CONCOURSE 

his  parents  that  he  and  his  brother  had  been  admitted 
to  the  "  Concours  de  1' Academic." 

"We  have  begun  the  competition  to-day,"  he  writes 
(September  14,  1829).  "There  are  three  hundred 
competitors,  and  out  of  these  fifty  have  to  be  selected. 
When  judgment  is  given,  I  will  tell  you  whether  we 
are  accepted,  and  where  we  come  in  the  list.  Our 
school  has  just  distinguished  itself  in  the  competition 
for  the  Roman  fellowship,  in  the  person  of  Etex  aink, 
who  got  the  second  sculptor's  prize,  and  richly 
deserved  the  first,  but  it  was  taken  into  consideration 
that  his  rival  was  twenty-nine,  and  could  not  compete 
again.  But,  notwithstanding,  he  must  be  well  satisfied, 
for  M.  Ingres  presented  him  to  us  saying,  '  Plere  is 
the  premier  grand  prix  for  sculpture, — he  richly 
deserves  it.'  One  must  feel  very  happy  to  receive 
such  approbation  from  one's  master.  M.  Ingres  has 
already  talked  of  this  concours  to  me,  and  possibly 
next  year  I  may  try  for  it,  but  it  is  a  difficult  thing ! 
Only  think : — one  must  first  compete  for  what  is 
called  VesquissC)  a  composition  painted  from  some 
historical  subject  given  by  the  professors;  then,  if 
one  is  accepted,  one  has  to  paint  an  academic,  and 
after  all  the  trials  ten  men  are  admitted  to  com 
pete  for  the  great  prize.  He  who  is  so  lucky  as  to 
win  it  gets  eight  hundred  francs  for  his  journey 
from  Paris  to  Rome,  and  an  allowance  of  a  thousand 


ACAD&MIE  JROYALE. 


crowns  for  five  years.  Oh  !  if  one  might  but  be  so 
happy  ! " 

Eventually  Flandrin  attained  this  desired  object, 
but  for  the  present  he  was  contented  with  a  minor 
though  very  important  success.  On  October  10, 
1829,  he  writes  home  to  say,  "The  result  of  the  con- 
cours  for  the  Academic  Royale  is,  that  out  of  four 
hundred  competitors  one  hundred  and  fourteen  have 
been  accepted,  ourselves  being  of  the  number.  We 
were  among  the  first,  for  I  am  ninth  and  Paul  thir 
teenth.  The  difference  between  Paul  and  me  is 
owing  to  some  trifling  thing  more  or  less,  for  we  are 
much  alike  as  to  our  powers."  .  .  . 

Ingres  was  pleased  at  the  success  of  his  pupils,  and 
having  obtained  a  hint  through  a  friend  of  the  exceed 
ing  straitness  of  their  means,  he  sent  for  Hippolyte, 
"  spoke  very  encouragingly,  and  said  he  should  hence 
forth  give  us  twenty  francs  a  month,  half  the  cost  of  his 
lessons.  Only  think  how  I  thanked  him  !  But  he 
bade  me  tell  no  one,  or  he  should  be  very  angry.  .  .  . 
I  can't,  however,  resist  the  temptation  of  giving  you 
this  pleasure." 

Strait  indeed  those  means  were.  That  winter — 
1829-30 — was  exceptionally  severe:  the  Seine  was 
frozen  over,  and  on  all  sides  there  was  intense  suffer 
ing,  with  which  the  efforts  of  active  charity  were 
unable  fully  to  cope.  Many  persons  died  of  the 


22  A  FIGHT  WITH  POVERTY. 

cold,  and  in  the  young  Flandrins'  garret  the  thermo 
meter  stood  at  14°  centigrade.  They  could  not  keep 
water  there  from  freezing,  and  the  oil  in  their  lamp 
froze  to  a  block;  but  Hippolyte  sends  a  cheerful  report 
that  he  and  Paul  "  are  well,  and  wait  patiently  for 
spring  to  bring  a  change  from  this  severe  weather." 

Not  unfrequently,  however,  the  brothers  had  no 
resource  save  to  go  supperless  to  bed,  and  continually 
during  that  long  hard  winter  they  used  to  do  this  as 
early  as  five  in  the  afternoon,  as  the  only  way  of  en 
during  the  cold  of  their  draughty,  fireless  attic.  Some 
times  indeed  they  were  so  fortunate  as  to  have  some 
little  commission, — a  sketch,  or  a  lithograph  to  execute 
for  a  shop,  in  which  case  the  well-husbanded  oil  had 
to  be  melted  for  their  little  lamp,  and  the  pleasure  of 
work  and  the  food  it  supplied  kept  their  blood  warm ; 
while  often  it  involved  a  nice  calculation  as  to  whether 
they  might  prudently  use  a  little  of  the  aforesaid 
precious  oil  on  anything  save  work,  and  if  the  decision 
was  affirmative,  the  long  hours  spent  in  bed  were  be 
guiled  with  books,  the  brothers  reading  aloud  in  alter 
nation,  trying  at  once  to  forget  their  present  discom 
fort,  and  to  make  up  for  past  deficiencies  in  their 
education.  It  was  to  these  studies,  which  were  still 
more  earnestly  and  methodically  prosecuted  later  on 
at  Rome,  that  Flandrin  was  indebted  for  almost  every 
thing  he  knew,  exclusive  of  art.  "Tardy  as  this 


LITER AR  Y  PERCEPTIONS.  23 

self-education  may  have  been,  and  incomplete  in  many 
ways,"  (writes  Vicomte  Delaborde,)  "it  nevertheless 
resulted  in  a  reality  and  depth  on  certain  subjects 
which  are  not  always  attained  by  several  years'  routine 
at  college.  Unquestionably  with  Flandrin,  as  with 
most  other  eminent  artists,  there  were  natural  instincts 
capable  of  originating,  fertile  and  elastic  in  the 
regions  of  imagination  ;  but  study  and  reflection  had 
greatly  added  to  the  power  of  these  innate  capacities, 
and  developed  what  began  by  a  mere  general 
perception  and  feeling  into  a  rare  delicacy  and  taste. 
I  doubt,"  (the  same  eminently  artistic  literary  man 
goes  on  to  say,)  "whether  it  be  possible  to  fathom  the 
mysteries  of  Dante's  depth  of  thought  with  more 
penetration  than  did  Flandrin ;  or  whether  any 
professor  of  literature  ever  appreciated  the  incom 
parable  beauties  of  the  Divina  Commedia  more  truly 
than  he  did.  Not  to  speak  of  Holy  Scripture, 
with  which  he  daily  fed  alike  his  art  inspirations  and 
his  Christian  faith,  his  memory  was  so  well  stored  with 
the  poetry  of  ancient  times,  (which  he  had  begun  to 
know  at  the  age  when  most  men  forget  them,)  that 
those  strains  became  a  standing  measure  to  which 
everything  else  was  compared  in  his  mind,  and  which 
was  to  him  the  test  of  false  and  true  poetry — of  real 
imagination  or  its  mere  imitation.  Yet  Flandrin  could 
not  read  either  Homer  or  Virgil  in  the  original  text, 


CLASSIC  IMA  GIN  A  TION. 


and  it  was  only  by  means  of  translations  that  he  could 
unlock  the  door  of  classic  literature.  But  what 
matter,  so  long  as  by  even  this  sidelong  approach 
his  instincts  attained  the  object  which  so  many 
who  tread  the  direct  road  fail  to  reach?  Many 
a  scholar  who  is  familiar  with  every  shade  of  meaning 
in  the  ancient  classic  languages,  many  an  adept  in 
all  imaginable  grammatical  difficulties,  knows  much  less 
as  to  the  general  character  and  the  moral  signification 
of  the  masterpieces  he  has  studied,  than  a  gifted  artist 
who  has  only  contemplated  them,  so  to  say,  at  a 
distance  through  translations." 

This  power  of  pure  and  classic  imagination  was 
displayed  in  Flandrin's  first  real  picture — his  Theseus, 
which  won  him  the  greatly  longed-for  Roman 
scholarship.  It  conveys  a  clear  idea  of  the  struggle 
which  the  young  painter  was  undergoing  with  poverty, 
that  just  before  the  time  when  this  all-important 
concours  was  to  begin,  he  was  so  entirely  without 
money  to  meet  the  necessary  expenses  of  colours, 
models,  etc.,  that  he  reluctantly  decided  to  withdraw 
from  the  competition,  and  it  was  only  on  hearing  M. 
Ingres'  expression  of  disappointment,  (for  he  was 
confident  in  his  pupil's  powers,  and  fully  believed 
he  would  prove  successful,)  that  Flandrin  resolved 
to  face  the  difficulty,  however  great,  and  to  endure  any 
amount  of  privation  and  personal  discomfort  rather 


PERSE  VE  RANGE.  2  5 

than  thwart  or  disappoint  the  master  for  whom  he  felt 
such  unbounded  gratitude.  But  the  daily  struggle  for 
subsistence  was  hard ;  a  few  lithographs  executed  on 
commission,  an  occasional  copy  from  some  great 
picture  in  the  Louvre;  sometimes  such  a  piece  of 
good  luck  as  the  portrait  of  a  certain  gendarme,  who 
was  so  delighted  with  his  own  likeness  that  he  volun 
tarily  added  five  more  to  the  stipulated  price  of 
thirty  francs ; — it  was  by  such  means  as  these  that 
Flandrin  held  on  for  the  bare  life.  His  letters  during 
that  hard  first  year  in  Paris  are  full  of  character, 
bright,  cheerful,  and  humble. 

"March  n,  1830. 

"  I  have  not  been  more  fortunate  here,  for  just  as 
the  concours  of  perspective  came  on  (which  is  the  pre 
liminary  of  others,  specially  that  for  the  Roman  prize, 
for  which  I  had  been  carefully  preparing  and  hoping 
to  succeed  in  it)  I  fell  ill,  and  on  the  very  eve  got  a 
sort  of  coup  de  sang  and  feverish  attack.  On  the  day 
of  competition  I  made  a  great  effort  to  get  up  and  go 
to  the  Academy.  I  began,  but  by  the  middle  of  the 
day  I  was  so  knocked  up,  I  was  obliged  to  leave  off. 
Happily  my  illness  did  not  last  long,  but  yielded  after 
a  few  days  to  the  effects  of  an  infusion  of  millepertuis : 
As  to  the  concours,  a  great  many  of  the  young  men 
who  are  fit  competitors  for  the  great  prize  have  not 
studied  perspective,  and  according  to  the  rules  they 


26  HOME  LONGINGS. 

and  I  alike  ought  to  be  out  of  the  competition.  But 
this  would  make  the  class  so  weak,  that  for  once  the 
rules  are  to  be  ignored,  and  in  this  case  I  shall  try  to 
go  in  for  the  great  concours." 

"  April  5,  1830. 

"  Dearest  Mother, — It  is  so  long  since  I  have  had 
the  happiness  of  a  chat  with  you,  you  must  be  scold 
ing  me  for  being  so  long  about  it ;  but  forgive  me,  for 
latterly  in  particular  I  have  had  so  much  to  do !  There 
are  all  my  usual  studies,  and  others  necessary  for  the 
five  or  six  concours  coming  on,  some  of  which  have 
already  begun ;  and  then  there  is  all  this  bother  about 
the  conscription,  which  keeps  me  running  about 
hither  and  thither.  Indeed  that  has  made  me  terribly 
anxious,  but  I  have  been  rather  easier  about  it  the 
last  few  days,  although  nothing  is  as  yet  decided.  I 
write  under  cover  to  cousin  Marietta.  .  .  .  Tell  her 
that  I  have  not  forgotten  her  advice,  but  follow  it 
daily.  Yes,  indeed,  dear  mother  and  cousin,  you  will 
see  us  come  back  to  Lyons  as  we  went,  believing  in 
God,  and  taking  some  pains  to  keep  His  Command 
ments.  (You  will  be  surprised  that  I  should  say  believ 
ing  in  God,  but  hardly  any  one  here  does  believe  in 
Him.)  We  shall  return  loving  and  respecting  our 
parents.  Ah,  indeed  !  every  time  I  think  of  seeing  you 
again  I  am  so  happy  I  could  cry  for  joy.  I  picture  to 
myself  my  arrival;  how  I  shall  run  up  the  stairs,  my 


THE  CONSCRIPTION.  27 

heart  beating  fast,  and  then  seeing  you  and  feeling  your 
arms  round  me  !  Then  I  fancy  how  I  shall  run  over 
all  the  rooms  with  Paul ; — but  there  is  one  which  makes 
me  very  sad — I  mean  our  sister's  room,  the  sister1 
whom  I  do  not  want  to  make  you  forget ;  she  was  too 
good,  and  we  shall  ever  have  her  present  to  our 
thoughts ;  but  I  want  to  supply  her  loss  to  you,  and 
all  our  efforts  shall  be  put  forth  to  show  you  how 
much  we  love  you. 

"  Pray  let  me  have  an  answer  to  this  letter,  I  want 
so  much  to  know  how  you  all  are.  .  .  .  Mama,  papa 
only  writes  letters  of  half  a  sheet  now.  I  know  how  it 
tries  him,  but  his  children  cannot  see  him  any  longer, 
and  he  must  think  of  the  delight  it  is  to  read  his 
letters  !  As  to  Auguste,  I  expect  him  to  write  very  soon. 
He  may  write  what  he  will,  if  only  it  be  a  good  long 
letter.  .  .  .  Be  at  rest  as  to  our  Easter  duties,  we  are 
preparing  for  them.  Five  months  more  before  we  shall 
see  you,  it  seems  so  long  !  But  we  will  make  good 
use  of  the  time." 

The  following  letter  alludes  to  Flandrin's  fear  of 
being  taken  by  the  conscription  : — 

"April  15,  1830. 
"My  dear  Papa, — At  last  I  am  out  of  danger,  and  I 

1  Caroline  Flandrin,  who  died  the  end  of  August  1829,  after 
a  long  illness. 


28  AN  ESCAPE. 


lose  no  time  in  telling  you.  Yesterday  I  passed  the 
Council  of  Revision.  I  had  been  terribly  anxious 
since  you  told  me  my  number.  Nobody  gave  me  any 
hope,  and  I  should  probably  have  been  taken  but  for 
the  exertions  of  a  member  of  the  Council  to  whom  M. 
de  Chateaugiron  had  introduced  me,  for  one  of  the 
generals  said  '  There  are  fellows  who  squint  worse 
than  that  sent  off ! '  *  But  meanwhile  M.  de  Chateau- 
giron's  friend  whispered  something  to  the  President, 
who  shortly  after  dismissed  me.  My  first  thought  was 
of  the  happiness  it  would  be  to  you  dear  papa  and 
mama ;  then  I  dressed  quickly  that  I  might  run  and 
tell  Paul,  who  was  waiting  impatiently  for  news.  So 
at  last  I  am  free  from  this  anxiety,  and  I  shall  set  to 
work  with  a  clearer  mind.  .  .  .  Something  happened 
on  Easter  Day  which  gave  me  great  pleasure,  as  I  am 
sure  it  will  you.  I  had  been  competing  with  all  the 
other  Academy  pupils  for  the  historical  composition 
prize.  The  picture  is  done  in  one  day,  each  com 
petitor  shut  up  in  his  stall.  The  subject  was  mytho 
logical;  Hercules  having  gone  down  to  chain  Cerberus, 
who  takes  refuge  under  Pluto's  throne,  he  drags  the 
monster  out  by  force.  I  did  my  best  with  it.  On 
Easter  Day,  M.  Ingres  summoned  all  the  competitors, 
and  when  we  arrived,  he  expressed  himself  well  satis 
fied  with  the  competition ;  and  then  coming  up  to  me, 
1  Flandrin  had  squinted  from  his  birth. 


A  SUCCESSFUL  CONCOURS.  29 

said,  'Here  is  the  fellow  who  deserved  the  medal, 
but  they  have  been  horribly  unjust  !  You  had  seven 
votes,  and  the  other  man  eleven.  It  has  hurt  me  very 
much,  and  made  me  quite  ill,  for  any  injury  done  to 
you  is  as  to  my  own  children.'  Then  I  told  him  what 
I  really  felt,  that  I  greatly  preferred  his  approbation 
to  the  medal,  (which  is  quite  true,  though  it  is  a  gold 
medal  of  the  first  class,)  and  how  much  I  feel  all  the 
trouble  he  takes  on  our  behalf.  He  encouraged  us, 
and  urged  us  to  do  well  in  the  three  approaching 
concours,  wrhich  lead  on  to  the  Roman  prize,  but  as  to 
that  I  have  no  hope  at  all.  It  becomes  harder  and 
harder.  All  the  same  I  will  tell  you  the  results  as 
they  happen.  In  the  last  competition  for  places  Paul 
was  fifth.  He  could  hardly  have  done  better.  M. 
Ingres  is  very  well  satisfied  with  us.'"' 

"PARIS,  May  19,  1830. 

"  My  dear  Papa, — You  remember  the  conconrs  which 
are  the  steps  towards  competing  for  the  Roman  prize. 
You  know  that  I  got  in  at  the  first  trial,  but  since  that 
I  have  competed  with  sixty  other  pupils  drafted  out  of 
several  lots.  We  had  to  make  a  composition  on  a 
subject  from  Grecian  history  in  one  day,  and  each 
man  shut  up  in  his  stall.  Twenty  were  to  be  taken 
out  of  the  sixty  competitors,  and  I  was  the  eleventh, 
greatly  to  M.  Ingres'  satisfaction  and  my  own,  as  I 


30  REVOLUTION  OF  1830. 

thought  of  the  pleasure  it  would  be  to  you — father, 
mother,  and  brother.  But  I  have  another  trial  to  pass, 
to  compete  with  the  nineteen  accepted  with  me,  and 
this  time  the  subject  is  a  great  '  Academy '  painted  in 
four  sittings.  I  began  to-day,  but  I  tremble,  because 
I  have  a  very  bad  position.1  However,  I  shall  do  my 
best,  and  then  God's  Will  be  done." 

"PARIS,  May  31,  1830. 

"  My  dear  Papa, — The  coucours  has  not  turned  out 
well  for  me,  I  have  not  succeeded.  I  did  worse  than 
usual  just  when  I  ought  to  have  done  better.  M. 
Ingres  was  very  much  vexed,  yet  he  was  very  kind  in 
comforting  me,  and  in  pointing  out  that  next  year  I 
might  be  more  successful  in  what  I  tried  to  do  now. 
Oh,  J  am  not  at  all  out  of  heart.  I  burn  with  the  love 
of  my  work,  and  M.  Ingres  !  M.  Ingres  himself  is 
satisfied  with  us.  Then  too  we  shall  soon  have  the 
happiness  of  seeing  you  again,  earlier  than  we  ex 
pected,  in  September  I  think.  The  very  thought  fills 
me  with  a  kind  of  impatience  and  joy  such  as  I  never 
felt  before  !  How  delightful  it  will  be  ! " 

Soon  after  the  Revolution  of  July  1830  broke  out, 

and   Flandrin's   next   letters   are   brief,   their   object 

being  merely  to  allay  the  anxieties  his  parents  were 

sure  to  feel  on  behalf  of  himself  and  his  brother  Paul. 

1  In  the  hall  where  the  competitors  painted. 


A  JO  URNE  Y  HOME.  3  1 


,   1830. 

"  Fearing  you  will  be  alarmed  about  us  when  you 
hear  of  the  outbreak  here,  I  write  to  assure  you  that 
we  are  keeping  quietly  at  home,  and  acting  very 
prudently.  We  hear  perpetual  firing,  everybody  is 
taking  arms  and  making  ready  for  the  worst.  The 
Palais  Royal  quarter,  boulevards  and  quays,  are  the 
scene  of  battle.  It  is  very  sad.  What  will  come  of  it 
all  ?  But  grievous  and  horrible  as  it  is,  pray,  dearest 
father  and  mother,  do  not  be  anxious  about  us  ;  we 
will  not  go  out.  I  only  beg  Auguste  to  be  as  prudent 
at  Lyons  as  we  are  here.  ...  I  cannot  frank  my 
letter,  the  street  is  intersected  by  barricades,  but  please 
be  easy,  we  will  not  run  into  danger.  Write  to  us." 

Shortly  after  this  the  brothers  went  home,  making 
the  long  journey  on  foot,  and  returning  in  October  to 
Paris  in  the  same  primitive  way. 

On  October  26,  1830,  Hippolyte  writes:  —  "We 
came  by  Arnay-le-Duc,  Saulieu,  Avallon,  Vermanton, 
etc.,  walking  fourteen  or  fifteen  lieues  daily.  At 
Auxerre  we  found  the  Garde  Nationale  of  several  towns 
called  out.  It  seems  some  days  ago  the  labourers  and 
vinedressers  of  Auxerre  combined  to  demand  that  the 
price  of  corn  be  lowered,  and  they  gathered  round  the 
Hotel  de  la  Prefecture  with  loud  threats.  The  Garde 
Nationale  tried  to  disperse  them,  but  the  mob  disarmed 


32  AUGUSTE  FLANDRIN. 

and  ill-used  several,  and  burnt  warehouses,  broke  into 
stores,  and  sold  the  corn  as  they  pleased.  So  further 
help  was  called  in,  and  the  Garde  Nationale  from  several 
places  round  came  to  disperse  the  mob,  and  made  a 
good  many  prisoners.  Further  on  we  came  upon 
some  hussars  who  were  going  to  support  the  National 
Guard.  Otherwise  our  journey  was  uneventful.  I 
never  was  hotter  or  saw  finer  weather,  which  lasted 
us  to  Paris, — and  it  is  more  noisy  and  lively  than 
ever." 

Flandrin's  eldest  brother  Auguste  had  followed  the 
family  bent,  and  was  likewise  an  artist ;  but  under  the 
pressure  of  poverty  he  was  at  present  disposed  to 
devote  himself  entirely  to  the  more  certainly  remunera 
tive  work  of  lithography.  Hippolyte  wished  his 
brother  to  come  forth  into  a  more  artistic  sphere ;  and 
eventually  Auguste  yielded  to  his  advice,  and  came 
also  to  Paris  to  study  under  Ingres.  The  following 
letter  is  on  this  subject : — 

"  PARIS,  Nov.  i,  1830. 

"  My  good  and  dear  Auguste, — I  write  to  tell  you 
something  which  has  pleased  us  very  much,  when  we 
went  to  see  M.  Ingres  on  our  return.  He  received 
us  warmly,  embraced  us  several  times,  and  then  we 
showed  him  the  sketches  made  at  Lyons.  He  was  very 
much  pleased  with  them,  first  of  all  with  those  from 


CRITICISMS.  33 


the  Perugino,1  and  then  those  made  during  our  journey, 
among  which  he  picked  out  the  Quay  of  Saint  Clair 
and  the  views  of  Bugey.  Among  these  he  greatly 
admired  the  coloured  sketch  of  the  Forest  of  Mazieres, 
with  the  Lake  of  Geneva  in  the  distance,  and  said  it 
was  admirable,  but  the  Pyramion,  half-covered  with 
clouds,  fixed  his  attention.  He  took  it  aside  to  ex 
amine  it,  and  then  exclaimed,  '  Your  brother  must 
have  a  great  deal  of  talent !'  He  told  me  to  make  a 
foreground,  whatever  I  pleased  ;  and  then  to  keep  it,  as 
he  would  use  it  as  a  background  in  one  of  his  pictures. 
He  thinks  it  would  be  a  great  pity  if  you  do  not  paint, 
and  I  entreat  you  with  all  my  heart  to  do  so.  I  believe 
you  would  sell  your  pictures,  and  I  know  you  would 
be  happy  in  the  occupation, — only  choose  fine  subjects 
such  as  raise  your  own  mind.  Draw  scenes  in  which 
nature  is  great  and  terrible,  such  as  the  valleys  of 
Saint  Rambert  or  Charabottes,  or  the  hills  of  Ain. 
How  I  enjoy  recalling  them  !  and  we  were  together 
then  ! 

"...  Now  to  answer  you  as  to  my  mind  and 
Paul's  as  to  Gros's  pictures.  We  do  not  like  them, 
because,  to  say  nothing  of  the  drawing,  which  is  very 
weak,  they  are  devoid  of  power  and  effect.  There  is 
plenty  to  catch  the  eye  of  what  is  glittering  and  bril 
liant,  but  that  is  all.  I  grant  that  there  is  very  skilful 

1  The  Ascension  in  the  Museum  at  Lyons. 
C 


34  HARD  WORK. 


manipulation  in  his  pictures,  but  it  is  not  what  one 
wants,  for  it  is  not  a  good  rendering  of  nature,  which 
is  far  more  tranquil.  We  may  be  told  that  we  are 
cold,  but,  on  the  contrary,  the  nature  that  I  behold  is 
far  warmer,  more  vigorous  and  energetic  than  Gros 
paints  it,  but  at  the  same  time  it  is  calmer.  This  is 
what  I  think,  but  do  not  let  what  I  say  go  beyond  our 
own  home." 

"PARIS,  Dec.  17,  1830. 

"  My  dear  Papa, —  .  .  .  We  are  well,  except  that  I 
have  had  bad  toothache  for  the  last  month,  and  have 
at  last  had  two  teeth  drawn  in  three  days.  I  was 
sorry  to  lose  them,  but  I  was  suffering  so  much,  and 
could  hardly  do  anything.  Now  I  am  better,  and  we  are 
hard  at  work.  God  grant  that  we  may  not  be  hindered 
by  war,  for  we  should  most  certainly  be  in  the  Garde 
Mobile,  and  no  one  would  care  to  be  dispensed  from 
that.  Meanwhile  we  are  working  as  if  nothing  could 
interrupt  us,  and  I  believe  it  is  the  best  thing  to  do  : 
— one  must  use  the  present  moment  well  if  one  does 
not  wish  to  regret  it  afterwards." 

"  ESTRfcPAGNY,  EURE,  Dec.  28,    1830. 

"  My  dear  Papa, — I  know  you  will  be  very  much 
surprised  at  the  date  of  my  letter,  but  I  will  tell  you 
how  it  has  come  to  pass.  The  ministers'  prosecution 
raised  an  excitement  in  Paris,  and  all  the  row  went  on 


DISTURBANCES  IN  PARIS.  35 

in  our  quarter,1  it  being  supposed  that  they  were  in  the 
Luxembourg.  It  was  necessary  to  keep  troops  and 
National  Guard  out  (there  were  certainly  forty  thousand 
men  in  our  quarter).  The  people  were  shouting  for  the 
ministers'  heads,  and  would  not  wait  for  the  judgment. 
Free  circulation  in  the  streets  was  stopped ;  we  were 
obliged  to  be  escorted  by  National  Guards  to  get  into 
our  own  room.  One  could  do  nothing  at  the  studio ;  in 
short,  everything  looked  like  an  immediate  crisis.  So, 
one  of  our  companions2  asked  us  to  go  with  him  to 
his  relations  in  Normandy,  and  work  with  him.  After 
asking  M.  Ingres'  leave,  we  accepted,  and  here  we  are, 
most  kindly  received  by  his  parents,  who  are  very  good 
to  us.  They  live  near  Rouen,  to  which  place  we  have 
just  made  an  expedition.  Some  other  time  I  will  tell 
you  about  all  the  interesting  things  we  have  seen. 
We  received  the  trunk  on  the  day  we  started.  Really, 
dear  papa,  we  cannot  thank  you  enough  for  the  trouble 
you  have  taken  about  it  and  all  its  contents,  great 
coats,  trousers,  shoes  and  stockings,  portfolios,  cover 
lids.  We  are  most  heartily  grateful  for  all  these  things. 
We  know  all  your  love  for  us ;  we  have  had  plenty  of 
proofs  of  that  all  our  lives,  and  we  thank  you  for  every 
thing  with  hearts  full  of  gratitude  and  love.  ..." 

1  The  Flandrins  were  at  this  time  occupying  a  room  hi  the 
Rue  Mazarin. 

2  Jules  Bisset. 


36  A  GENEROUS  MASTER. 

"PARIS,  Feb.  18,  1831. 

"...  Complaints  in  every  direction  !  I  don't 
know  if  it  is  the  same  at  Lyons,  but  here  people 
complain  more  of  the  new  government  than  of  the  old. 
The  newspapers  cry  out,  and  caricatures  are  more 
spiteful  than  ever.  I  don't  know  if  there  is  just 
cause,  but  it  seems  as  though  it  were  difficult  to  rule, 
since  France  changes  her  regime  ten  times  in  thirty 
years,  and  is  none  the  better  satisfied.  I  should  know 
but  little  of  what  goes  on  if  others  in  the  studio  did 
not  talk  about  it ;  I  am  altogether  too  much  occupied 
with  drawing  and  painting  to  acquire  information 
otherwise.  I  do  most  earnestly  desire  to  get  on,  in 
order  to  relieve  you  of  the  sacrifices  you  make  for  us. 
I  work  as  hard  as  ever  I  can.  .  .  .  My  thoughts  are 
often  full  of  you,  and  those  are  the  pleasantest  I  have." 

"PARIS,  March  30,  1831. 

"  We  are  doing  all  we  can  to  earn  something.  I 
have  a  pupil  at  fifteen  francs  a  month,  who  comes  to 
our  room  for  his  lessons.  It  is  not  much,  but  still  ! 
M.  Ingres  daily  shows  more  kindly  interest  in  us  :  he 
has  just  put  the  climax  to  his  goodness  by  remitting 
all  that  we  ought  to  pay  him,  so  that  we  have  nothing 
to  spend  but  ten  francs  a  month  for  models.  We  do 
all  we  can  to  show  our  gratitude,  and  I  have  been  so 
fortunate  as  to  be  able  to  be  of  some  use  in  making 


STUDIES.  37 


some  copies  for  him.  He  encourages  me  to  try  and 
get  into  the  concours  for  the  Roman  prize.  Before 
that  there  are  twenty  trials,  but  I  will  make  every 
effort,  and  then,  whatever  the  result  may  be,  I  shall 
have  nothing  to  reproach  myself  with.  Our  time  is 
quite  filled  with  studying  in  M.  Ingres'  studio,  the 
concours  at  the  Academy,  and  preparation  for  what  is 
called  the  concours  de  Rome.  That  implies  a  great 
deal  of  trouble  and  work,  for  one  has  to  hunt  up 
museums  and  libraries,  in  order  to  learn  about  the 
costumes  and  ways  of  the  ancients,  and  to  read  up 
their  history.  We  shall  know  in  May  whether  I  get 
in,  and  meanwhile  I  am  working  with  a  hearty  good 
will.  .  .  .  We  often  see  M.  Foyatier,  and  he  very 
kindly  sometimes  asks  us  to  dinner,  we  gladly  accept 
ing.  He  is  working  at  several  statues  for  the  great 
exhibition  about  to  take  place.  M.  Ingres,  our  dear 
master  and  benefactor,  is  also  going  to  exhibit  a  large 
and  admirable  picture.1  Oh,  what  a  good  disciple  I 
want  to  be  !" 

"PARIS,  April  i$,  1831. 

"...  Oh!  how  I  love  our  dear  M.  Ingres,  and  how 
earnestly  I  long  to  do  him  credit  in  the  concours! 
Three  of  these  are  just  over,  and  successfully ;  that  of 
perspective,  of  attitude,  and  of  composition.  May 

i  The  Martyrdom  of  S.  Symphorien,  which  was  not  finished 
till  three  years  later. 


38  GARDE  MOBILE. 

God  be  pleased  to  help  me  on  to  the  end,  for  I  have 
still  two  concours  to  go  through  before  reaching  that 
which  is  called  the  concours  de  Rome.  But  it  will  all 
be  settled  soon,  and  I  will  write  and  tell  you  the 
result. 

"  There  has  been  a  fresh  census  made  of  the 
National  Guard  in  Paris  just  lately,  and  I  could  not 
escape  this  time.  I  am  inscribed  on  the  lists  of  the 
Garde  Mobile.  I  was  asked  if  I  could  supply  my 
uniform,  but  I  answered  that  it  was  impossible,  so, 
whenever  I  am  wanted,  I  shall  be  clothed  and 
equipped  by  the  Government,  What  I  want  to  get 
off  is  the  service  of  the  Garde  Se'dentaire,  because 
mounting  guard  and  exercising  are  such  a  loss  of  time. 
But  when  the  Garde  Mobile  is  called  out  you  may  be 
sure  the  case  is  urgent,  and  everybody  ought  to  be 
willing  to  contribute  to  the  safety  and  defence  of  their 
country,  and  to  be  ready  to  leave  everything  for  so 
useful  and  honourable  a  duty.  A  few  days  ago  we 
had  a  splendid  review  of  forty  thousand  men.  The 
King  presented  the  standards,  and  the  troops  were 
magnificent,  especially  some  of  the  cavalry,  among 
others  the  Cuirassiers.  It  was  a  Sunday — neither 
muddy  nor  dusty — the  Champ  de  Mars  was  quite  full 
between  spectators  and  troops,  and  it  lasted  till 
evening.  All  went  off  well,  and  no  accident  marred 
the  day's  success." 


COMPOSITION  PRIZE.  39 

There  is  a  P.S.  to  this  letter  in  Paul  Flandrin's 
handwriting  as  follows  : — "  Papa,  I  am  quite  out  of 
breath  !  I  rushed  up  to  tell  Hippolyte  that  he  has  got, 
the  medal,  the  composition  prize.  I  have  just  heard 
it.  I  am  so  glad  to  have  to  tell  you  such  a  good 
thing.  I  can  imagine  your  pleasure.  We  saw  the 
exhibition  this  morning,  and  everybody  adjudged  the 
prize  to  him." 

"  PARIS,  May  30,  1831. 

"  Mon  bon  ami,  my  dear  Auguste, — I  have  got 
through  the  last  trial  before  reaching  the  concours  for 
the  great  prize,  but  it  has  been  cruelly  hard  !  The 
subject  was  a  figure  painted  three  feet  high.  I  did  it, 
and  yesterday  was  the  day  of  judgment.  I  was  satis 
fied  myself,  I  had  good  reason  to  hope ;  but  you  shall 
hear !  M.  Ingres,  M.  Guerin,  M.  Granet,  and  three 
other  members  of  the  Institut,  on  going  into  the 
exhibition  hall,  pronounced  me  to  be  first  But  no, 
M.  Gros  and  his  party  carried  the  day,  and  I  was 
tossed  out  from  being  first  to  last;  and  finally  M. 
Ingres,  in  despair,  went  away,  after  protesting  with 
all  his  might  against  what  had  been  done,  and  I  was 
rejected  !  You  can  fancy  how  I  felt  yesterday  when 
I  heard  it ;  that  is  to  say,  when  I  learnt  that  I  had 
been  rejected,  without  knowing  any  of  the  circum 
stances.  I  did  not  dare  go  near  M.  Ingres,  and  yet 
I  had  nothing  to  reproach  myself  with;  my  figure 


40  SYMPATHY. 


was  much  the  best,  I  may  say  so  without  vanity. 
At  last,  in  the  evening,  I  resolved  to  go  to  him.  I 
found  him  at  the  dinner-table,  but  he  could  not  eat. 
Several  members  of  the  Institute,  M.  Guerin  among 
them,  had  come  to  comfort  him,  but  he  was  a  long 
way  off  that.  He  received  me  saying,  '  Here  is  the 
lamb  that  has  been  butchered!'  And  then,  address 
ing  his  wife,  who  was  trying  to  quiet  him,  he  said, 
'  Oh  !  you  have  no  idea  how  cruel  and  bitter  injustice 
is  to  a  young  man's  heart !'  and  all  this  was  said  with 
such  a  heartfelt  manner,  that  the  tears  were  falling 
from  my  eyes.  He  made  me  sit  down  to  dinner,  and 
embraced  me  as  a  father  his  son.  I  went  away 
comforted.  How  much  I  owe  to  this  man,  who  has 
already  done  so  great  things  for  us,  and  who  has,  per 
haps,  done  most  of  all  now.  I  don't  know  what  to 
say  to  him,  what  to  call  him,  but  the  thought  of  him 
fills  my  eyes  with  tears,  out  of  mere  gratitude.  But 
still,  from  time  to  time  I  am  beset  with  regrets,  for  it 
might  have  been  a  great  start  for  me,  and  I  had  good 
reason  to  hope.  I  was  prepared  to  strain  every 
nerve.  I  was  en  train,  and,  moreover,  it  was  the  only 
way  of  testifying  my  gratitude  to  M.  Ingres,  for  to 
you,  dear  brother,  I  may  say  it — my  good  master  had 
reckoned  greatly  on  my  picture.  Perhaps  he  was  too 
hopeful,  but  I  would  have  spared  nothing  to  justify 
his  confidence.  And  then  it  would  have  been  such  a 


A  UGUSTES  AFFECTION.  41 


pleasure  to  papa  and  mama,  and  to  you.  I  felt  all 
that,  and  it  doubled  the  delight  I  felt  in  what  I  hoped. 
I  shall  keep  my  painting,  the  one  just  rejected,  for 
you,  and  bring  it  to  you  when  I  come  to  Lyons." 

There  is  a  touching  little  incident  connected  with 
this  picture,  and  the  competition  for  which  it  was 
produced.  As  usual,  Hippolyte  was  greatly  straitened 
for  means,  and  had  he  been  admitted  as  a  competitor 
for  the  Roman  prize  ("  admis  en  loge"  as  the  technical 
phrase  is)  he  would  have  been  unprepared  to  meet 
the  inevitable  though  not  very  heavy  expenses.  So, 
feeling  tolerably  confident  of  such  a  prospect,  he 
decided  on  the  only  attainable  means  of  raising 
necessary  funds,  and  wrote  to  his  brother  Auguste,  in 
whose  hands  the  medal  he  had  won  a  month  before 
was  left,  to  sell  it  to  some  goldsmith,  and  send  him 
the  money.  Auguste  had  a  small  sum  in  hand  himself, 
which  he  forwarded  at  once  to  Hippolyte,  cherishing 
the  first  token  of  his  younger  brother's  success,  which 
he  could  not  bear  to  sell,  and  when  Hippolyte,  finding 
what  had  been  done,  wanted  to  return  the  money, 
which,  however  acceptable,  had  lost  its  original  object, 
Auguste  affectionately  insisted  on  his  brother's  keeping 
it  and  using  it  as  he  pleased.  Hippolyte  accordingly 
made  use  of  it  to  begin  a  small  picture  now  in  the 
possession  of  his  family,  called,  "  Virgil's  Shepherds," 


42  HINDRANCES. 


which  was  finished  later  on  at  Rome,  when  the  much- 
desired  scholarship  had  been  really  won. 

"PARIS,  June  29,  1831. 

"  My  Dear  Papa, — Forgive  me  for  not  answering 
sooner — it  was  owing  to  something  stronger  than  I !  I 
have  been  confined  to  bed  for  some  days  with  a  malady 
which  is  very  common  here,  called  le  or  la  grippe 
(influenza),  and  I  would  not  write  until  I  was  getting 
quite  well  for  fear  of  making  you  anxious. 

"Dear  father  and  mother,  it  was  your  fete  day 
lately,  and  I  let  it  pass  unnoticed  !  But  what  could  I 
say?  That  I  love  you?  Oh,  you  know  that!  My 
whole  heart  is  yours,  and  I  can  only  renew  the  deed 
of  gift !  It  is  wholly  yours,  and  will  always  beat  fast 
at  the  precious  names  of  father  and  mother.  And  all 
I  can  say  Paul  says  too, — he  is  heartily  one  with  me. 

"  I  knew  how  keenly  you  would  share  my  trouble  at 
my  failure  in  the  examination.  From  time  to  time 
regrets  will  come  over  me  anew,  but  on  the  whole  I  am 
comforted  (which  is  more  than  I  thought  to  be). 
But  that  you  know  is  M.  Ingres'  doing, — you  heard  of 
all  his  kindness  to  me.  I  shall  never  forget  it  all ! 
He  often  does  the  same  sort  of  thing.  The  other  day 
he  inquired  whether  I  thought  you  were  vexed  with 
me  because  of  my  failure,  as,  if  it  were  so,  he  would 
write  something  on  my  behalf  in  one  of  my  home 


ENTHUSIASM  FOR  POLAND.  43 

letters.  I  told  him  I  did  not  think  you  were  vexed 
with  me,  but  that  all  the  same  I  should  be  very 
pleased  if  he  would  write.  So  he  promised,  and  I  am 
going  to  take  my  letter  to  him.  .  .  .  Mama,  if  you 
see  Madame  Lacuria,  tell  her,  please,  that  her  son 
is  well.  He  took  great  care  of  me  during  my  illness, 
and  did  all  manner  of  things  for  me.  Dear  papa  and 
mama,  take  care  of  yourselves,  that  your  children 
may  find  you  well,  and  have  no  drawback  to  the  plea 
sure  of  seeing  you.  The  time  will  soon  come.  Oh, 
how  delicious  it  is  to  think  of  coming  home  ! " 

Hippolyte  might  say  that  he  was  too  busy  to  know 
anything  of  the  outer  world  on  his  own  account,  but 
he  was  too  genuine  a  Frenchman  to  be  without  keen 
feeling  for  European  politics.  His  enthusiasm  for 
Poland,  common  to  so  many  of  his  day,  breaks  out 
in  some  letters  of  this  date  : 

"  PARIS,  Aug.  i,  1831. 

"  .  .  .  .  Our  life  here  is  very  quiet,  and  I  have 
nothing  to  tell  but  what  I  have  told  you  over  and  over 
again.  From  time  to  time  some  event  rouses  us, 
but  not  often.  Such  an  exceptional  thing  has  just 
happened  in  the  recent  fetes.  We  saw  the  magnificent 
review  which  the  King  held  on  the  29th,  and  a  glorious 
sight  it  was.  There  were  at  least  a  hundred  and 
thirty  thousand  men  under  arms,  two  hundred  cannon, 


44  LOVE  OF  LIBERTY. 

and  as  many  caissons,  which  altogether  made  two 
immense  lines,  nearly  two  miles  long,  crossing  the 
town  from  barrier  to  barrier.  The  whole  denied 
before  the  King  and  Don  Pedro,  the  Emperor  of 
Brazil,  shouting  '  Vive  la  Pologne '  with  the  utmost 
enthusiasm.  May  these  shouts  reach  the  Russian 
camps  and  their  Emperor's  palace,  and  tell  them  that 
the  Poles  will  not  be  destroyed,  for  they  kindle  the 
sympathy  of  every  generous  heart.  Oh,  that  Poland 
were  not  so  far  off ! " 

Before  this  he  had  written  to  his  brother  Auguste  : 
— "  Dis  done — it  seems  as  if  papa  thought  me  a 
Carlist.  I  don't  know  what  has  given  him  the  idea, 
but  truly,  I  don't  believe  anybody  loves  liberty  more 
than  I  do,  and  as  a  proof  I  like  the  Belgians,  and  I 
admire  the  Poles  and  their  great  deeds.  If  one 
admires  their  deeds  one  must  needs  recognise  and 
admire  the  principle  whence  they  spring.  As  for  me, 
I  pray  daily  that  they  may  be  triumphant ;  but  one 
must  do  something  more,  and  give  them  practical  help. 
Are  we  to  do  nothing  for  a  nation  which  fought  side 
by  side  with  our  troops  for  fifteen  years,  which  fell 
with  us,  and  which  has  undergone  so  much  barbarous 
mutilation  and  oppression  merely  because  its  cause 
was  bound  up  with  our  own  ?  Many  people  grumble, 
but  government  holds  its  own,  and  does  not  heed 


RHEUMATISM.  45 


popular  clamour.      But  all  this  is  only  for  you — I  say 
it  to  you,  because  I  like  you  to  know  all  I  think." 

The  brothers  had  just  paid  another  visit  to  their 
home,  (again  on  foot,)  when  a  serious  insurrection 
broke  out  in  Lyons  among  the  always  hot-headed,  in 
subordinate  silk-weavers  of  that  city  ;  occasioned  this 
time  by  the  promulgation  of  a  fixed  tariff  of  wages. 
The  young  Flandrins  were  overtaken  at  Sens  by 
tidings  of  what  had  been  going  on,  and  hardly 
refrained  from  going  back  to  be  near  their  parents  in  a 
season  of  danger.  However,  they  judged  it  wiser  to 
go  on  to  Paris,  and  hear  the  true  state  of  things,  and 
there  tidings  from  home  satisfied  them  to  a  certain 
extent  that  their  return  to  Lyons  was  useless.  But 
Hippolyte  writes  vehemently  to  Auguste,  indignant 
with  the  Government,  and  ready  to  defend  all  the 
Lyonnese,  masters  and  workmen  alike  ! 

The  winter  of  1832  was  another  season  of  laborious 
trial  and  strict  self-denial.  Hippolyte  began  for  the 
first  time  to  suffer  from  the  rheumatic  affections  which 
were  a  continual  torture  to  him  during  the  rest  of  his 
life,  fostered  as  they  were  by  frequent  work  in  damp  or 
cold  churches.  This  first  attack  seems  to  have  come 
on  while  he  was  engaged  in  copying  Sebastian  del 
Piombo's  Visitation  in  the  Louvre. 

"  For  the  last  month  "  (he  writes  February  14,  1832) 
"I  have  been  working  at  the  Musee  at  a  copy.    It  pays 


46  FLANDRIN  A  COOK. 

badly,  but  then  while  earning  something  I  am  study 
ing  too,  as  the  picture  is  a  fine  one.  The  worst  of  it  is 
having  to  work  without  any  fire  in  a  gallery  seven 
hundred  feet  long.  The  winter  is  not  very  severe,  but 
I  can  tell  you  it  needs  a  good  will  to  remain  five  or 
six  hours  together  without  stirring." 

Another  and  more  imminent  peril  was  at  hand  in 
the  shape  of  cholera.  Hippolyte  writes  to  his  father : — 

"PARIS,  March's.'],  1832. 

"  I  must  send  you  scraps  and  odd  bits,  for  I  have 
not  a  clear  hour  to  myself.  The  examinations  are 
coming  on,  and  they  follow  so  fast  one  upon  the  other 
that  the  several  studies  necessary  for  each  fill  up  all  my 
time.  It  won't  do  to  dawdle  !  Dear  papa,  you  are 
afraid  lest  we  should  want  for  anything,  but  we  are 
only  afraid  lest  you  should  inconvenience  yourself  too 
much  for  us,  and  that  distresses  us.  We  have  never 
spent  so  little  as  this  winter,  and  that  because  we,  with 
Lacuria,  have  cooked  for  ourselves.  We  clubbed  to 
gether,  bought  a  great  saucepan  and  three  pots,  and 
now  we  make  soups  and  dishes  of  potatoes,  and  some 
times  a  pot  an  feu,  which  lasts  the  whole  week.  You 
may  imagine  that  the  cooking  is  plain,  but  it  is  more 
wholesome  than  in  a  restaurant;  and  perhaps  feeding  in 
this  way  may  help  us  to  escape  the  cholera  morbus, 
which  has  broken  out  here  suddenly,  terrifying  every- 


CHOLERA.  47 


body.  No  other  subject  is  talked  about,  and  the 
wonderful  thing  is  that  it  has  happened  in  the  midst 
of  splendid  weather,  which  we  have  had  for  the  last 
two  months.  People  expected  to  see  the  cholera 
advance  gradually  through  the  departments  between 
Paris  and  England ;  but  not  at  all !  it  leapt  straight 
from  London  here.  Wards  are  set  aside  in  the 
hospitals,  ambulances,  and  depots  for  drugs  are  pre 
pared  on  all  sides,  but  they  say  the  best  remedy 
is  in  an  orderly,  quiet,  and  simple  habit  of  life.  And 
so  we  try  not  to  be  fidgetty ;  for,  according  to  that,  we 
may  be  hopeful.  Our  room  is  clean  and  airy,  and  so 
we  entreat  you  not  to  be  anxious  about  us.  Let  us 
have  trust  in  God. 

"You  will  have  heard  already  at  Lyons  that  the 
cholera  is  here,  and  so  I  write  without  loss  of  time  to 
tell  you  that  both  of  us  and  Lacuria  are  well." 

"  PARIS,  April  13,  1832. 

"  I  have  just  received  your  letter,  which  shows  how 
alarmed  you  are  about  us,  but  I  think  you  would  get 
one  from  me  that  same  day.  It  was  not  altogether 
reassuring,  for  Paris  was  anything  but  quiet,  and  the 
ravages  of  the  cholera  were  spreading.  Since  that  it 
has  been  worse  still ;  more  than  a  thousand  persons 
have  been  attacked  daily.  Indeed  it  is  a  sad  sight  to 
see  all  the  litters  carrying  sick  people,  or  processions  of 


48  PRUDENT  COUNSELS. 

ten  or  twelve  corpses  at  once — no  rare  thing,  I  assure 
you.  But  for  the  last  two  days  the  malady  has  visibly 
decreased ;  not  only  fewer  people  are  attacked,  but  the 
disease  is  less  severe,  and  more  easily  subdued.  May 
God  grant  that  it  spare  Lyons  ! " 

"  PARIS,  April  19,  1832. 

"My  Dear  Papa  and  Mama, — I  have  received 
your  last  letter  which  speaks  of  our  coming  to  Lyons. 
I  did  not  answer  the  same  day,  because  Lacuria  had 
just  written  to  his  parents  on  the  same  subject,  and  I 
thought  they  would  give  you  tidings  of  us;  so  I  waited 
two  days,  in  order  that  you  might  hear  the  oftener. 

"  We  had  thought  of  going  to  Lyons  in  order  to 
share  your  danger  if  the  cholera  reached  you,  but 
meanwhile  it  broke  out  so  suddenly  here  that  we  have 
been  so  far  in  a  state  of  indecision.  The  best  doctors 
say,  and  all  the  newspapers  repeat  their  opinion,  that 
it  is  most  imprudent  to  go  away  now.  They  say  that 
if  one  is  in  the  heart  of  the  malady  and  has  become 
acclimatised,  it  is  better  to  stay  quiet,  for  that  one  is 
much  more  likely  to  sicken  in  a  change  of  air;  and  this 
has  been  pretty  well  proved  by  the  number  of  people 
who,  flying  from  Paris,  have  been  taken  ill,  twenty,  thirty, 
or  forty  miles  hence,  in  places  where  there  had  been 
no  previous  infection.  So  you  see,  dear  papa,  that 
we  have  substantial  reasons  for  deciding  to  remain. 


A  MEDAL   WON.  49 

Moreover,  the  worst  of  the  evil  is  happily  over,  it  is 
dying  away,  and  it  is  quite  impossible  to  account  for 
the  line  of  its  advance.  There  were  great  apprehen 
sions  about  the  more  confined  and  dirty  quarters  of 
Paris,  but  so  far  the  cholera  has  not  been  worse  there 
than  elsewhere ; — for  instance,  our  quarter,  which  is 
certainly  one  of  the  best,  has  been  most  severely 
attacked.  Happily  it  is  decreasing  now,  and  has 
crossed  the  river.  It  is  said  now  to  be  worst  in  the 
Marais. 

"  The  reports  sent  to  Lyons  must  have  been  very 
alarming,  and  perhaps  they  may  have  been  exaggerated. 
But  the  scourge  has  been  very  severe,  for  yesterday 
the  Moniteur  officially  announced  more  than  ten  thou 
sand  deaths  since  the  beginning.  I  trust  that  all 
necessary  precautions  will  be  taken  at  Lyons,  since 
there  at  any  rate  there  is  some  warning.  Be  as  easy 
about  us  as  you  can.  Take  care  of  yourselves  for 
our  sakes." 

In  his  next  letters  to  his  father  Flandrin  says  :  "We 
have  no  time  to  think  about  the  cholera,  for  now  I  am 
embarked  in  the  concotirs,  and  have  gained  a  medal 
which  gives  me  a  permanent  right  to  the  first  places  in 
the  Academy.  But  now  the  matter  in  hand  is  the 
famous  Roman  concours"  And  a  few  days  later  he 
says  :  "  I  told  you  that  I  had  got  a  medal.  Well, 


50  HISTORICAL  COMPOSITION. 


since  that  the  whole  school  has  competed  for  the 
historical  composition.  Twenty  were  to  be  selected 
out  of  this  large  number,  and  I  was  fifth.  Now  there 
is  the  last  trial  to  come,  the  one  in  which  I  was 
rejected  last  year.  I  am  preparing  for  it  with  all  my 
might,  and  mean  to  pull  hard  at  the  collar.  M.  Ingres 
is  very  much  pleased  at  the  way  in  which  I  have  been 
received.  He  is  as  kind  and  good  to  us  as  ever — 
we  often  go  to  his  house.  He  is  well,  and  I  pray  God 
to  preserve  him  long  to  us." 

All  this  time  Flandrin's  health  was  in  a  very  uncer 
tain  state,  and  practically  he  was  quite  unfit  for  the 
work  before  him.  Weakened  as  he  had  been  by  priva 
tion  and  overwork,  the  atmospheric  influences  of  the 
cholera  told  severely  upon  him,  and  he  became  so 
weak  that  he  could  literally  not  walk  without  the  support 
of  his  brother's  arm ;  and  almost  immediately  after  the 
beginning  of  this  anxious  competition  (his  entree  en 
loge,  as  it  is  called)  he  became  too  ill  for  any  further 
resistance,  and  had  to  take  to  his  bed,  in  spite  of  the 
importance  of  the  work  in  hand.  It  was  a  severe 
trial,  and  the  more  alarming  that  one  of  Flandrin's 
fellow-competitors  for  the  Roman  prize  was  struck 
down  by  the  cholera,  and  died  almost  at  once.  The 
doctor  who  was  called  in  to  Flandrin  threatened  him 
with  the  like  results  if  he  attempted  to  leave  his  bed, 


ATTACK  OF  CHOLERA. 


still  more  if  he  tried  to  work ;  and  for  a  few  days  he 
submitted,  from  sheer  impossibility  of  doing  anything 
else.  But  the  moment  he  felt  the  least  return  of 
strength  he  dragged  his  weary  frame  back  to  the  scene 
of  competition,  leaning  painfully  on  his  brother's  arm ; 
and  after  working  till  he  well-nigh  dropped,  he  would 
go  back  to  bed  for  the  next  day,  quite  exhausted,  to 
begin  the  same  process  the  day  after !  Perhaps  the 
excitement  really  kept  him  up — anyhow,  with  his 
usual  affectionate  consideration  for  his  parents, 
Hippolyte  treated  his  illness  as  lightly  as  possible  to 
them.  He  writes  : — 

"  DE  MA  LOGE,  PARIS,  June  I,  1832. 
"  I  write  a  hasty  line  because  you  are  anxious  and 
believe  me  to  be  ill.  I  did  not  know  that  Lacuria 
had  said  anything  about  it,  or  I  would  have  given  you 
particulars  before.  It  is  only  that  I  have  had  just  a 
little  touch  of  cholera.  It  lasted  five  days,  during 
which  I  was  pretty  well  spent,  but  the  cousin  of  one 
of  my  companions  nursed  me,  and  I  soon  got  well. 
Happily  it  was  not  much,  and  now  I  am  full  of  very 
different  matters  !  I  have  to  paint  a  picture,  it  is  my 
first,  and  I  am  competing  with  men  who  have  tried 
seven  or  eight  times  already.  But  I  will  not  be  dis 
couraged,— at  least  I  hope  I  shall  not." 


52  CONCOURS  DE  ROME. 


"PARIS,  June  24.  1832. 

"  I  wish  I  could  see  you,  .  .  .  but  I  am  forcibly 
detained  here — gratitude  itself  ties  me  down.  I  must 
try  to  justify  M.  Ingres'  confidence  by  my  picture,  I 
must  defend  his  doctrine  and  the  credit  of  his  school 
against  men  who  are  so  prejudiced,  that  even  if  they 
saw  the  truth  they  would  not  acknowledge  it  for  fear 
of  condemning  themselves.  You  see  I  have  a  weighty 
task  upon  my  shoulders ;  God  grant  that  I  may  be  able 
to  bear  it.  But  if  it  should  crush  me,  at  least  I  shall 
have  left  nothing  undone,  and  shall  have  used  every 
effort." 

"PARIS,  Aug.  31,  1832. 

"  At  last  I  can  give  you  a  sign  of  life.  Thank  God 
I  have  come  to  an  end  of  the  concours.  Now  there  is 
a  month  to  wait  before  knowing  the  result,  which  is 
trying,  as  we  should  already  have  set  out  to  join  you, 
if  I  did  not  fear  that  M.  Ingres,  who  takes  so  much 
interest  in  us,  might  think  us  indifferent.  So  we  must 
wait  till  after  the  judgment,  which  will  be  given  by 
the  end  of  September.  Till  then  our  pictures  are  all 
under  seal,  and  M.  Ingres — whose  first  glance  will 
pronounce  my  sentence — will  only  see  mine  at  the 
same  time  with  the  rest  of  the  jury.  I  await  that  with 
the  keenest  impatience,  for  one  word  of  praise  from 
him  is  of  infinite  value  to  me.  On  the  last  day  of 
competition  the  candidates  can  communicate  with  one 


SUSPENSE.  53 


another,  so  that  we  saw  each  other's  pictures.  Mine 
is  in  quite  a  different  line  from  the  rest,  and  it  made 
an  impression  which  they  did  not  conceal.  They 
judged  me  much  more  favourably  than  I  have  judged 
myself,  for  they  talked  about  my  winning  the  prize, 
and  I  was  not  thinking  of  that.  The  Director,  Sub- 
director,  and  Professor  who  came  that  evening  to  affix 
the  seal  of  the  School  on  the  pictures,  spoke  of  mine  to 
M.  Ingres,  and  very  favourably  too.  All  this  would  tend 
to  excite  my  hopes,  but  no  !  I  must  keep  them  down. 
My  dear  master  is  on  tenterhooks  like  myself.  He 
often  says,  (  Oh,  if  you  have  done  well  how  much  I 
shall  owe  to  you  ! '  How  dreadfully  long  this  month 
will  seem  !  " 

"  PARIS,  Sept.  9,  1832. 

"  My  dear  Auguste, — If  you  only  knew  how  im 
patient  we  are  to  see  you  !  But  various  essential 
matters  hinder  me,  things  which  I  cannot  set  aside. 
I  am  waiting  most  impatiently  for  the  time  when  M. 
Ingres  will  be  able  to  tell  me  what  he  thinks  of  my 
picture.  You  can  hardly  imagine  how  I  long  for  and  yet 
dread  the  moment !  The  judgment  of  my  competitors 
was  in  its  favour,  and  I  must  confess  to  you  that  in 
my  own  heart  and  conscience  I  think  myself  superior 
to  the  rest.  This  is  a  confession  which  I  entreat  you, 
to  keep  to  yourself — it  might  appear  unseemly  for  me 
to  make  it.  Besides,  I  warn  you  that  I  expect  nothing; 


54  SUCCESS. 


for  my  work  is  not  in  the  least  like  the  present  style 
of  things.  Not  that  I  am  the  least  bit  satisfied  with 
my  picture  anyhow — I  see  numbers  of  faults  which 
with  more  time  I  could  have  corrected  ;  but  remember 
that  there  are  twelve  figures,  background,  a  great  deal 
of  architecture,  and  a  heap  of  accessories  :  and  all  that 
had  to  be  done  in  thirty-five  days,  for  I  was  ill  during 
the  first  six  weeks,  and  the  others  had  half  done  before 
I  began  to  paint." 

At  last  the  longed-for  moment  arrived,  and  Flan- 
drin  found  he  had  been  successful !  Let  him  tell  his 
own  story. 

"PARIS,  Sept.  25,  1832. 

"My  dear  Papa  and  Mama,  —  I  must  tell  you  of 
our  joy.  I  have  worked  hard  and  taken  great  trouble, 
but  I  am  altogether  rewarded  by  the  satisfaction  of  my 
dear  master.  Let  me  tell  you  everything.  To-day  our 
pictures  were  exhibited.  When  the  time  of  opening 
drew  near  my  heart  beat  fast,  for  it  is  very  alarming 
to  find  oneself  for  the  first  time  exposed  to  public 
criticism  and  censure.  At  last  the  doors  were  opened, 
the  public  entered,  and  from  behind  I  could  look  on 
at  the  groups  of  spectators.  First  I  saw  an  enormous 
gathering  cluster  round  my  picture,  and  then  a  number 
of  people  whom  I  did  not  know  asked  me  if  I  was  not 
M.  Flandrin  ?  and  when  I  said  yes,  they  congratulated 


A  POPULAR  PICTURE.  55 

me.  A  minute  after  all  our  own  fellow-students 
arrived  together.  They  examined,  criticised,  and 
then  came  up  to  me,  squeezed  me,  surrounded  me, 
embraced  me ;  and  indeed  these  tokens  of  friendship 
pleased  me  very  much  !  Soon  after  the  men  from 
other  studios  came,  and  many  of  them  added  their 
testimony  to  that  of  my  own  comrades ;  and  then 
there  came  a  crowd  of  people  whom  I  had  never  seen, 
among  whom  were  some  of  the  reporters,  as  you  may 
see  in  the  ConstitutionnelQi\hz  26th.  I  was  very  happy 
in  the  general  approbation,  but  I  still  wanted  that  of 
M.  Ingres ;  he  had  not  yet  seen  my  picture,  and  I 
trembled.  About  noon  I  went  to  see  him,  and  told 
him  what  was  going  on  at  the  Exhibition.  He  shed 
tears  of  joy,  and  told  me  to  come  back  at  five  o'clock, 
when  he  should  have  seen  it.  All  the  day  there  was 
a  crowd  round  my  picture.  When  five  o'clock  came 
I  went  to  my  master.  He  met  me  with  open  arms, 
and  told  me  that  very  few  painters  had  made  so 
brilliant  a  debut,  that  he  was  proud  of  me  as  his  pupil, 
and  a  number  of  other  flattering  things.  I  repeat  all 
this  because  you  are  my  father,  mother  and  brother, 
and  because  what  gladdens  me  makes  you  so  happy. 
And  certainly  I  could  not  have  a  more  welcome 
reward  than  M.  Ingres'  satisfaction,  and  the  way  in 
which  he  expressed  it.  In  short,  the  day's  result  is, 
that  artists  and  the  public  have  decided  by  an 


56  THE  PRIZE  WON. 

immense  majority  that  I  deserve  the  prize.  With  the 
public  and  M.  Ingres  on  my  side  I  think  that  I  do 
deserve  it,  but  I  don't  expect  to  get  it." 

"  Thursday,  z'jth. — To-day  the  crowd  is  as  great  as 
yesterday,  and  says  the  same  thing.  Many  people 
have  been  to  congratulate  M.  Ingres,  which  pleases 
him  very  much.  This  morning  he  went  to  his  pupils, 
and  praised  my  picture  highly,  speaking  of  us  with 
so  much  kindness  and  affection.  All  this  is  far  more 
than  I  expected." 

"Friday,  v&th. — There  is  still  a  crowd  around  my 
picture,  and  everybody  says  I  shall  get  the  prize ;  but 
I  don't  believe  it,  for  the  cabal  is  horribly  active. 

"Here  we  are  at  Saturday,  29th.  It  is  the  day  of 
judgment,  but  yet  I  am  much  calmer  than  when  I  was 
waiting  for  M.  Ingres'  opinion.  Now  he  and  the  public 
have  adjudged  the  prize  to  me,  and  that  makes  me 
calm.  I  have  done  my  best,  and  I  hope  I  shall  bear 
injustice  bravely  since  I  have  done  my  duty.  Among 
painters  our  battle  is  the  struggle  between  good  and 
evil — the  two  principles  can  never  be  reconciled  ;  and 
so  our  enemies  are  going  to  collect  all  their  strength. 
M.  Ingres  has  just  left  me  to  go  to  the  judgment, 
saying, '  We  shall  see  how  far  men  can  carry  iniquity !' " 
Below  the  last  lines  come  the  following  words,  written 
with  a  trembling  hand  in  large  writing : — "  Well,  I  was 
mistaken  !  I  have  got  the  prize  !  I  will  tell  you  all 


FLANDRIWS  DELIGHT.  57 

fully  soon.    Adieu  !     Your  son  who  loves  you,  oh,  so 
very  much  ! " 

"PARIS,  Sept.  30,  1832. 

"My  dear  Papa  and  Mama, — You  cannot  fancy 
M.  Ingres'  delight !  In  spite  of  all  his  enemies  one  of 
his  pupils  has  at  last  succeeded  in  winning  this  prize  ! 
To  be  the  French  student  sent  to  Rome,  and  that  by 
universal  consent !  My  picture  remains  at  the  school, 
to  be  placed  in  the  Salle  des  grands  prix. 

"  Our  journey  will  be  delayed  still,  for  the  prizes  are 
not  given  yet,  and  I  must  receive  my  brevet  with  my 
own  hand.  I  am  very  sorry,  for  I  long  to  embrace 
you,  tell  and  explain  everything  to  you;  but  we 
must  wait  another  three  weeks.  It  does  seem  so  long ! 

"  An  idea  has  come  into  our  head,  and  if  it  could 
come  to  pass  I  should  be  so  delighted !  It  is,  that 
Auguste  might  come  at  once  to  Paris;  he  would  see 
the  distribution  of  prizes,  the  Exhibition,  in  short,  all 
Paris ;  and  after  a  few  days  we  should  set  out  together 
for  Lyons,  and  after  staying  there  for  two  months  I 
should  start  for  Rome,  where  I  must  be  by  January 
i  st.  If  Auguste  could  do  this,  it  would  make  me 
very  happy ;  but  he  must  make  haste,  for  we  long  to 
get  to  you. 

"  M.  Ingres  is  always  talking  to  me  of  Rome,  and 
what  I  am  to  do  there.  It  seems  that  I  shall  inhabit 
the  Villa  Medici,  the  most  beautiful  palace  in  Rome, 


58  PAUL  WINS  A  MEDAL. 

that  city  of  palaces.  I  cannot  realise  it!  What  a 
wonderful  thing,  to  have  five  years  entirely  given  up 
to  study  and  cultivating  one's  talent !  On  the  other 
hand,  there  are  some  very  sad  things.  M.  Ingres  says 
that  next  year  Paul  must  get  the  first  prize  for  land 
scape,  but  meanwhile  we  shall  be  separated.  Think 
of  that!" 

"PARIS,  Oct.  21,  1832. 

"  My  dear  Papa, — I  am  still  kept  from  you,  first  by 
a  portrait  I  am  painting  for  M.  Ingres  which  I  cannot 
get  finished,  and  further,  by  what  does  not  depend  on 
myself.  I  have  to  receive  my  passport  for  Rome,  and 
the  money  for  my  journey,  all  which  is  done  at  the 
Ministere  des  Affaires  Etrangeres,  where  they  do  not 
hurry  themselves.  But  they  have  been  promised  me 
this  week,  and  then  I  shall  take  leave  of  my  dear  master 
and  come  to  you  quickly.  .  .  . 

"  Now  for  a  piece  of  news  !  Paul  has  competed  for 
the  first  time  in  historical  landscape  composition. 
Yesterday  judgment  was  given,  and  it  is  he,  it  is  Paul 
has  won  the  medal !  We  are  pleased,  and  so  is  M. 
Ingres ;  he  looks  upon  it  as  a  good  augury  for  the  great 
prize  next  year.  Long  live  M.  Ingres  and  his  school ! 

"The  distribution  of  prizes  came  off  a  few  days 
ago  at  the  Institut.  People  say  that  there  never  was 
such  applause  as  burst  out  when  I  went  up  to  salute 
the  President  and  M.  Ingres.  My  dear  good  master 


CELEBRITY.  59 


was  so  moved,  and  squeezed  me  in  his  arms  so  tightly ! 
How  I  do  love  him  !  more  than  I  can  tell.  I  hope 
soon  to  tell  you  the  day  we  start,  and  the  day  we 
shall  arrive.  I  am  boiling  with  impatience.  Adieu  ! 
I  embrace  you  all  three  with  my  whole  heart." 

Flandrin  was  the  first  pupil  of  Ingres  who  had  won 
the  grand  prix,  and  it  was  an  event  which  caused  a 
great  stir  in  the  art  world  of  Paris.  "  The  success  of 
his  school,"  says  Vicomte  Delaborde,  "  had  the  charm 
of  novelty  to  some,  but  to  others  it  signified  a  double 
victory  over  the  old  academic  idealism,  and  over  the 
avowedly  revolutionary  tone  which  inspired  a  certain 
set  of  artists  at  that  time." 

All  this  contributed  to  make  Flandrin  a  greater  fame 
than  was  usual  under  the  circumstances,  and  he  found 
himself  suddenly  becoming  a  celebrity,  less  on  account 
of  his  real  talent  than  as  the  advanced  guard  or  repre 
sentative  of  a  party.  This  was  not,  however,  the 
temptation  it  might  have  been  to  a  more  vain  or  self- 
conscious  man ;  he  was  never  disposed  to  come  for 
ward  or  meet  the  world's  advances,  and  even  if  his 
natural  humility  and  simplicity  had  not  withheld  him 
from  profiting  by  the  opening  society  offered  him,  his 
means  were  an  effectual  barrier  between  the  young 
artist  and  such  indulgence.  He  could  not  even 
afford  the  clothes  necessary;  and  when  M.  Bertin, 


60  AMBROISE  THOMAS. 


director  of  the  Journal  des  Debats  (a  man  of  consider 
able  weight  in  the  political  and  literary  world),  wish 
ing  to  make  acquaintance  with  the  rising  artist,  invited 
him  to  dinner,  Flandrin  had  to  find  some  excuse,  his 
real  reason  for  not  accepting  being  scarcely  available, 
i.e.  that  he  possessed  nothing  in  the  way  of  head  gear 
save  a  casquette,  and  had  not  wherewithal  to  buy  a  hat. 
Six  happy  weeks  were  spent  by  Flandrin  at  Lyons 
with  his  family,  and  then  at  last  he  set  off  for  the 
Paradise  of  artists— Rome,  accompanied  by  two 
other  successful  competitors  for  the  grand  prix; 
Leveil,  who  had  won  that  for  architecture,  and  Am- 
broise  Thomas,  the  future  composer  of  Ctatf  and  the 
Songe  d'une  nuit  (Fete,  who  had  just  gained  the  first 
prize  for  musical  composition,  and  to  whom,  from 
this  time,  Flandrin  was  bound  with  the  ties  of  closest 
friendship.  From  Thomas,  Flandrin  learnt  what 
music  really  is,  and  during  the  happy  days  spent  in 
the  Villa  Medici,  it  was  the  young  painter's  constant 
delight,  after  a  day  of  hard  study  and  work,  to  spend 
the  evening  listening  to  his  friend's  exquisite  rendering 
of  the  chefs-d'oeuvre  of  his  art.  It  was  a  delight 
which  never  failed  to  the  end ;  until  the  day  when  the 
same  skilled  and  loving  hands  for  the  last  time  drew 
forth  from  the  organ  of  Saint  Germain  des  Pre's  the 
strains  to  which  his  friend's  ear  was  closed  for  ever  in 
this  life  ;  and  while  Hippolyte  Flandrin's  coffin  waited 


DEPARTURE  FROM  FRANCE.  61 

before  the  altar,  Ambroise  Thomas  burst  forth  with 
Beethoven's  great  Andante  (Symphony  in  A),  and 
almost  overwhelmed  himself  by  the  memories  and 
associations  wakened  thereby. 

To  those  now  accustomed  to  rush  through  the  great 
Mont  Cenis  tunnel,  the  following  account  of  the  young 
artist's  journey  will  seem  almost  like  fiction. 

"  ROME,  Jan.  12,  1833. 

"  My  dear  Papa  and  Mama, — I  must  set  you  at  rest 
and  tell  you  of  our  journey  and  safe  arrival.  After  I 
had  said  good-bye  to  you  and  my  brothers,  those  dear 
brothers  !  I  felt  that  I  was  really  rushing  away  from 
you  and  from  Lyons.  As  long  as  I  could  I  looked 
back  to  Lyons,  which  contains  all  I  love,  and  sighed 
heavily.  One  of  my  companions  did  all  in  his  power 
to  cheer  me,  but  he  did  not  set  to  work  the  right  way. 
His  gaiety  worried  me,  tears  would  have  relieved  me 
far  more  than  laughing  and  singing.  However,  by 
degrees  they  brightened  me  up,  and  the  first  night  we 
slept  at  La  Tour  du  Pin.  .  .  .  The  next  day  we  entered 
Savoy — inspection  by  the  Savoyard  Douane,  and  ap 
proach  to  the  Alps.  I  enjoyed  my  companions'  ad 
miration,  for  they  had  never  seen  anything  of  the 
kind,  and  I  shared  it  heartily,  for  the  scenery  wras 
very  fine.  We  entered  a  very  narrow  valley,  frowning 
rocks  above  us,  the  road  cut  out  of  their  sides,  and 


62  MONT  CENTS. 


down  below  the  precipice  a  torrent,  the  foam  of  which 
we  could  see  as  we  heard  its  roar.  The  weather  was 
fine,  but  the  temperature  grew  colder,  and  in  a  few 
hours  we  began  to  walk  over  snow  (I  say  walk,  for  we 
constantly  did  walk,  and  that  very  willingly).  The 
next  day  we  crossed  the  Grotte  des  £chelles,  and  went 
for  some  hours  through  a  wild  valley,  which  however 
grew  wider  as  we  approached  Chambery,  which  is  a 
pretty,  lively  town,  and  all  around  it  cheerful.  Mont- 
melian  and  Aiguebelle  are  in  this  valley,  and  then  we 
entered  into  the  Maurienne.  There  the  landscape 
changes,  it  becomes  wilder,  the  pyramid-like  mountains 
are  of  darker  rocks,  scattered  over  with  fir-trees,  whose 
dark  boughs  add  to  the  gloom  of  the  scene.  The 
valley  rises  up  to  Lanslebourg,  and  you  see  Mont 
Cenis.  At  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  we  began  the 
ascent.  Our  team  consisted  of  eight  mules  and  seven 
conducteurs.  We  went  slowly,  by  the  light  of  a  lantern  : 
— everything  was  covered  with  snow,  nothing  to  be 
heard  but  the  grelots  of  our  team,  and  the  howling 
wind,  which  soon  brought  the  clouds  over  us,  so  that 
we  could  see  no  farther  than  the  ground  we  stood  on. 
A  fine  snow  came  whirling  round  and  blinded  us  ;  and 
meanwhile  we  listened  to  a  story  told  by  one  of  the 
men,  of  a  post  carriage  which  went  over  the  precipice 
ten  days  ago.  Everything  was  lost,  men,  horses  and 
carriage.  He  wound  up  by  saying,  '  As  for  to-day  I 


TURIN.  63 


am  not  afraid  of  the  snow,  but  it  is  the  wind  ! '  And 
then  the  coachman,  the  one  you  saw,  asked  very 
gravely  if  we  had  said  our  prayers,  and  commended 
his  wife  and  children  to  God.  All  this  was  not 
exactly  alarming,  but  it  was  rather  exciting.  We 
three  young  men  went  on  ahead,  and  were  first  at  the 
top.  We  could  see  nothing  but  the  road,  the  clouds, 
the  crosses  put  up  here  and  there  to  mark  the  wind 
ings  of  the  way,  and  the  little  refuges.  At  the  top 
we  breakfasted ;  the  mules  were  taken  off,  and  we 
went  on  with  our  three  horses.  And  now  our  troubles 
began  ;  for,  crossing  the  plain  of  Mont  Cenis,  there  was 
a  high  wind,  the  carriage  got  into  ruts,  and  we  had  to 
keep  it  from  upsetting  by  pulling  it  with  ropes  on  the 
opposite  side  from  that  on  which  it  was  tilted.  I  can 
assure  you  I  never  was  hotter  than  while  about  this, 
knee-deep  in  the  snow  !  Part  of  the  descent  on  the 
Italian  side  was  difficult,  but  we  soon  left  the  snow,  the 
sun  grew  warm,the  mountains  were  lower,  and  we  reached 
Susa  in  splendid  weather,  and  so  went  on  to  Turin. 

"  We  stayed  a  day  at  Turin,  and  I  wrote  to  you 
from  there.  The  streets  are  straight,  wide,  and  full 
of  life.  The  two  next  days  we  were  in  the  plains 
of  Lombardy.  At  the  Austrian  customhouses  we 
were  examined  and  rummaged,  and  even  the  letters 
in  our  portfolios  were  read.  At  last  we  arrived  at 
Milan,  a  superb  town  which  one  should  have  plenty 


64  THE  APENNINES. 

of  time  to  see.  We  spent  Christmas  Day  and  the 
following  day  there.  The  cathedral  is  sublime,  all  in 
white  marble,  more  than  three  hundred  and  sixty  feet 
high ;  we  went  up  to  the  top  twice  by  an  open  staircase. 
The  interior  is  full  of  precious  sculptures  and  pictures, 
in  short,  the  whole  thing  is  a  marvel.  It  is  impossible 
to  tell  you  all  we  saw  in  a  letter,  but  we  made  careful 
notes  each  evening,  and  I  shall  lose  nothing. 

"After  Milan,  we  saw  Piacenza,  Parma,  Modena. 
Everywhere  customhouses,  everywhere  passports  called 
for,  coming  in  and  going  out  of  all  the  towns — it  is  a 
downright  persecution.  Many  a  time  we  cried  out 
Vive  la  France  !  We  stayed  a  day  at  Bologna,  and  then 
started  again  to  cross  the  Apennines.  At  first  we  had 
bad  weather  in  the  mountains  ;  there  was  a  fine  snow 
falling  all  that  day  and  the  next  morning,  but  about 
nine  o'clock  the  wind  rose,  carried  away  the  mists, 
and  gave  us  a  view  of  the  mountains.  The  road  be 
came  worse  and  worse,  and  we  were  constantly  obliged 
to  have  four  oxen  as  a  renfort  to  our  three  horses. 
The  summits  of  the  Apennines  are  wild,  and  the 
crosses  one  sees  here  and  there  are  dreary,  for  they 
are  expiatory,  and  point  out  the  spot  of  some  assassi 
nation.  We  were  ascending  still  for  three-quarters  of 
this  day.  The  wind  was  terrible ;  it  carried  the  snow 
about  like  dust,  and  we  were  constantly  smothered  in 
whirlwinds  of  it.  The  clouds  rested  on  the  mountain 


ARRIVAL  A  T  ROME.  65 

crests,  and  were  carried  away  with  frightful  rapidity. 
More  than  once  we  thought  the  carriage  would  be 
upset,  but  happily  we  got  over  all  the  highest  points 
without  accident,  which  is  more  than  every  one  can 
say,  for  we  saw  one  carriage  upset.  At  last  the 
weather  became  glorious,  and  the  next  day  we  de 
scended  and  reached  Florence.  I  must  jump  over 
the  rest  of  our  journey,  which  was  prosperous,  and 
tell  you  about  Rome. 

"We  saw  it,  not  without  excitement,  when  about 
five  lienes  off;  the  dome  of  St.  Peter's  rising  above  all. 
A  few  minutes  after  we  met  some  of  our  comrades, 
who  had  come  to  meet  us  j  all  the  others  had  made  a 
mistake,  and  come  out  the  day  before.  At  the  Porta 
del  Popolo  I  met  M.  Bodinier's  brother,1  and  several 
other  friends  who  went  with  us  to  the  Academy.  We 
were  delightfully  received  by  the  students,  and  dined 
that  evening  with  M.  Horace  Vernet.  As  the  student 
whom  I  succeed  is  ill,  I  have  a  charming  room  pro 
visionally.  I  command  the  whole  town  ;  and  the  first 
thing  I  saw  from  my  bed  on  waking  was  St.  Peter's 
and  the  Vatican.  The  house  and  gardens  and  every 
thing  is  far  better  than  I  had  been  told.  Why  are 

1  Bodinier  is  a  French  artist,  the  painter  of  various  Italian 
subjects,  among  which  a  picture  called  "Ave  Maria  dans  la 
Campagne  de  Rome"  is  well  known.  It  is  now  in  the  Museum 
at  Angers. 

E 


66  THE  MASS  OF  BOLSENA. 


you  not  here,  in  this  glorious  country?  The  next  day, 
at  breakfast,  I  got  M.  Ingres'  letter  enclosed  in  yours. 
Oh  !  what  a  pleasure  it  was,  I  kissed  them,  and  cried 
over  them.  ..." 

Flandrin's  delight  in  Rome  was  as  great  as  might 
be  expected.  In  his  first  letter  to  his  brothers  he 
speaks  enthusiastically  of  his  visit  to  the  Vatican, 
which  had  exceeded  his  greatest  expectations.  Espe 
cially  he  particularises  the  Mass  of  Bolsena,1  the 
School  of  Athens  and  the  Dispute.  He  writes  to  his 

parents : — 

"ROME,  Feb.  6,  1833. 

"  Rome  comprises  everything  necessary  to  make 
an  artist  happy ;  a  glorious  sky,  a  beautiful  country,  a 
fine  type  of  men,  grand  monuments,  and  the  most 
splendid  pictures  and  sculptures.  Every  day  I  make 
acquaintance  with  some  chef-d'oeuvre^  but  I  do  not 
hurry,  because  one  grows  utterly  weary  with  seeing 

1  Alluding  to  this,  M.  Delaborde  says,  "Is  it  not  noticeable 
that  of  all  Raffaele's  chefs-d'oeuvre  in  the  Vatican  the  one  which 
he  specially  mentions  is  precisely  the  least  com}  Heated  both  as  to 
subject  and  execution,  the  one  perhaps  which  contains  most 
markedly  that  reality  in  type,  that  unction  and  simplicity  of  ex 
pression  which  was  eventually  to  stamp  the  French  painter's  own 
works?  It  would  seem  as  if  Flandrin's  earnest  admiration  for 
the  Mass  of  Bolsena  might  be  partly  because  he  saw  his  own 
presentiments  developed  therein,  and  felt  at  home  before  that 
picture  which  so  essentially  embodies  inspiration  without  effort, 
and  truthfulness  without  display. " 


LIFE  AT  ROME.  67 

too  much  at  once,  and  I  do  not  want  to  weary  of 
what  is  beautiful.  But  in  spite  of  all  these  things 
I  am  sad,  especially  in  the  evenings,  because  I  want 
you.  I  am  alone,  and  my  thoughts  always  turn  to 
you.  I  have  a  magnificent  view  from  my  window, 
and  in  the  evening,  when  the  sun  is  down,  I  look  out 
over  this  great  town,  over  the  Campagna  beyond,  and 
my  gaze  loses  itself  in  the  vast  horizon  of  the  sea.  But 
my  thoughts  go  farther,  much  farther — to  you,  and  I 
see  you  alone,  sad,  far  from  your  children  ;  the  picture 
saddens  me,  and  I  shed  tears/which  are  some  relief, 
and  then  I  turn  to  a  comforting  idea,  that  of  my  return, 
and  this  gives  me  courage  and  energy  for  work." 

"Feb.  14. — For  some  time  I  have  been  at  work, 
but  not  as  yet  very  actively.  Several  things  hinder 
me.  First,  I  have  still  a  good  deal  to  see ;  then  the 
room  and  studio  which  I  occupy  at  present,  though 
most  delightful,  are  only  temporary,  which  keeps  me 
in  suspense,  and  prevents  my  settling  thoroughly.  I 
shall  not  have  my  permanent  quarters  till  April. 
However,  I  am  not  losing  my  time.  I  am  working 
from  Raffaele,1  and,  above  all,  I  profit  by  the  contents 
of  a  splendid  library.  Sometimes  I  go  in  the  evening 
to  the  Director's,  where  there  is  often  a  great  crowd, 

1  Flandrin  made  some  very  interesting  studies  from  the  Stanze 
at  this  time,  which  are  now  in  the  possession  of  his  pupil,  Louis 
Lamothe. 


68  OCCUPATIONS. 


but  that  does  not  suit  me  best.  I  like  it  better  when 
there  are  not  so  many  people,  and  when  my  late 
travelling  companion  Thomas  plays  exquisitely.  .  .  . 
Yesterday,  Boieldieu,  one  of  the  first  French  composers, 
who  is  passing  through  Rome,  came  to  M.  Vernet's 
salon.  Thomas  was  introduced  to  him,  and  then  he 
asked  for  me,  shook  hands,  and  seemed  much  inter 
ested.  He  has  a  fine  head,  which  indicates  the 
genius  he  has  displayed." 

"Feb.  15. — I  have  just  finished  some  drawings 
from  the  antique,  for  which  the  Minister  sent  to  M. 
Vernet,  on  behalf  of  a  work  going  on  in  Paris.  The 
Director  applied  to  me,  and  I  undertook  them.  Now 
I  am  doing  some  bits  from  Raffaele,  in  the  Vatican, 
as  a  study.  Then,  as  I  told  you,  I  read  a  great  deal; 
and  I  am  learning  Italian,  at  which  I  am  working 
steadily,  because  it  is  so  useful,  that  one  can  hardly 
get  on  without  it.  We  have  a  great  deal  to  do  with 
Italians,  and  it  is,  moreover,  a  great  enjoyment  to 
read  and  know  the  great  classics  of  this  language ;  so 
1  work  hard  at  it.  To-day  I  have  been  taking  the 
portrait  of  a  sculptor  student  who  has  finished  his 
time  and  is  returning  to  Paris — Jaley T  by  name ;  this 

1  Now  member  of  the  Academic  des  Beaux  Arts,  and  the 
sculptor  of  two  of  the  finest  modern  historical  statues  in  France, 
Mirabeau  and  Bailly,  executed  for  the  Chambre  des  Deputes  by 
the  order  of  M.  Thiers  when  he  was  Ministre  de  1'Interieur. 


HOME  CRAVINGS.  69 

will  remain  in  the  Academy I  am  on  very 

pleasant  terms  with  all  my  fellow-students,  and  have 
nothing  whatever  to  complain  of  as  concerns  them. 
I  hope  they  may  say  as  much  of  me.  I  am  very 
happy  here,  but  I  don't  want  to  go  to  sleep  in  my 
bien-etre.  I  know  what  is  due  to  M.  Ingres,  and  his 
letter,  which  I  read  over  often,  is  a  constant  stimulus 
to  me.  May  the  result  justify  my  efforts  !" 

There  was  one  drawback  to  Hippolyte's  full  happi 
ness,  to  which  allusion  is  often  made.  It  was  the  first 
time  in  their  lives  that  he  and  his  brother  Paul  had 
been  separated;  and,  while  thoroughly  appreciating 
the  relief  from  grinding  want,  and  the  opportunity  of 
"  talking  face  to  face  with  Raffaele  and  Phidias,"  he 
sorely  missed  the  dear  companion  who  had  hitherto 
shared  the  hardships  of  his  life,  and  whom  he  now 
craved  after  to  share  its  pleasures.  Writing  to  Paul, 
he  says :  "  Rome  is  sublime  in  her  beauty,  but  one's 
mind  is  not  always  equally  able  to  enjoy  it.  I  am 
often  very  sad,  especially  in  the  evening,  when  I  look 
at  the  magnificent  sunset  sky,  and  my  thoughts  wander 
afar.  When  the  lights  in  the  town  begin  to  glimmer 
I  shut  my  window,  and  read  Plutarch  till  about  nine 
o'clock,  and  then  I  go  to  bed  and  read  over  your 
letter  and  M.  Ingres',  and  fall  asleep  thinking  of  you 
and  him.  .  .  .  ;  Can  it  be  really  true  that  I  have  left 


70  HOPES. 


the  Rue  Mazarin  and  the  studio,  Pont  Royal  and  the 
city,  with  her  two  crowning  towers  of  Notre  Dame ! 
I  dwell  more  on  all  their  beauties  now  that  I  am 
absent.  This  country  is  delightful,  but  it  will  be 
much  more  so  when  we  enjoy  it  together.  Allans, 
courage,  let  us  work  away !  The  progress  we  both 
make  will  add  to  the  delight  of  meeting  again ! " 

Flandrin's  letters  to  his  brothers,  who  were  now 
together  in  Paris,  are  full  of  enthusiastic  love  for  art, 
and  earnest  cravings  for  advance  in  it  both  for  himself 
and  them. 

"ROME,  Feb.  25,  1833. 

"I  rejoice  to  see  that  you  are  working  hard;  I  have 
always  felt  that  Auguste  would  not  have  cause  to 
repent  of  his  resolution,  and  what  you  Paul  and 
Bodinier  tell  me  of  his  progress  is  precisely  what 
pleases  me  best,  because  I  have  confidence  in  your 
judgment,  and  I  know  that  you  love  him  too  much  to 
flatter  him.  Dear  Auguste,  persevere  bravely,  and 
we  will  all  three  go  on  together  and  help  one  another. 
For  my  own  part,  I  feel  greatly  the  want  of  an  aid 
and  helper ;  of  some  one  to  raise  my  courage  when  it 
fails,  as  too  often  happens,  and  which  has  already 
happened  here,  although  amid  so  much  that  is  new 
and  exciting  I  ought  to  be  free  from  such  a  malady. 
But  it  is  just  because  the  sight  of  all  these  beautiful 
things  makes  me  long  to  work,  and  several  misadven- 


SETTLING  TO   WORK.  ^l 


tures  hinder  me  from  working  as  I  should  like.  First 
of  all,  there  is  no  room  in  the  Vatican,  it  is  full  of 
copyists,  and  if  you  want  to  paint  you  must  engage  a 
scaffold  three  months  beforehand.  Then,  on  the 
other  hand,  I  cannot  work  at  the  Academy,  because  I 
have  not  yet  got  my  studio,  the  man  whom  I  succeed 
not  having  finished  his  last  picture.  M.  Vernet  has 
been  so  kind  as  to  lend  me  his  studio,  but  it  is  so  full 
of  his  pictures  and  concerns,  and,  in  honest  truth, 
those  are  so  entirely  different  from  what  I  want  to  do, 
that  I  cannot  stay  there  long,  still  less  work  there. 
(Don't  repeat  this  to  any  one ;  it  is  not  well  to  get 
wrong  with  the  people  one  lives  with,  especially  when 
there  is  nothing  whatever  of  which  to  complain.) 
But  I  hope  soon  to  be  in  my  own  quarters,  for  which 
I  shall  have  waited  three  months,  not  in  idleness 
certainly,  but  to  my  great  inconvenience." 

"March  i,  1833. — Don't  be  anxious  about  my 
health  ;  I  am  quite  well  now.  It  was  only  that  a  little 
while  back,  while  working  in  the  Vatican,  I  got  a  chill, 
which  brought  back  my  pains ;  but  now  I  have  got  a 
good  cloak  of  thick  Roman  cloth,  which  is  an  invalu 
able  defence  against  the  cold,  and  since  that  I  have 
worked  on  without  any  return  of  the  pains.  (However, 
I  beg  the  aforesaid  pain  not  to  look  upon  this  as  said 
in  defiance.) 

"  I  was  very  sorry  to  hear  of  M.  Ingres'  illness,  both 


72  '  MUSIC. 


because  of  his  own  suffering,  and  because  it  must  delay 
his  picture.  I  do  so  dread  that  it  will  not  be  in  the 
Exhibition !  and  if  it  appeared  now  it  would  be  so 
a  propos  !  Everybody's  eyes  are  fixed  in  expectation 
on  our  master,  and  I  really  believe  that  great  work 
would  be  appreciated.  That  would  be  the  final  stroke 
of  victory,  at  least  I  think  and  hope  so  with  all  my 
heart.  .  .  .  You  were  right  to  reassure  M.  Ingres 

about and ;  we  seldom  meet,  and  they  are 

working  hard.  Tell  M.  Ingres  that  the  only  people  with 
whom  I  talk  art  are  himself,  Raffaele  and  Phidias. 
I  have  never  had  any  discussion  in  the  Academy,  and 
hope  not  to  have.  Words  are  not  very  effectual  to 
convince  in  such  a  case ;  example  goes  a  great  deal 
further ;  let  us  try  to  argue  by  that  means. 

"My  dear  Paul,  you  talk  about  music,  and 
Beethoven's  Pastoral  Symphony.  Oh,  how  I  should 
like  to  have  heard  it  with  you  !  The  way  you  speak 
shows  that  you  appreciated  it  thoroughly.  I  am 
fortunate  enough  to  know  it,  not  indeed  as  executed 
by  the  perfect  orchestra  of  the  Conservatoire,  but 
admirably  rendered  on  the  piano  by  my  good  friend 
Thomas,  who  gives  us  some  of  the  best  music  almost 
every  evening.  We  have  Beethoven,  Mozart,  and  all 
the  best  masters  in  turn,  and  often  there  is  music  in 

i  The  Martyrdom  of  Saint  Symphorien.     It  was  not  exhibited 
till  1834. 


SOCIETY.  73 


M.  Vernet's  salon,  when  I  promise  you  I  am  never 
absent !  All  the  best  society  comes  there.  Yester 
day  evening  we  had  a  Grand  Duchess  of  Baden,  a 
Bavarian  Princess,  and  another  from  Sweden,  besides 
ambassadors,  dukes,  counts,  and  countesses,  barons 
and  so  forth ;  among  whom  I  often  see  very  fine  heads 
and  good  draperies.  Among  the  beauties  Mademoiselle 
Vernet  is  always  conspicuous.  As  to  me  I  look  and 
listen  from  my  corner,  and  sometimes  I  actually  pluck 
up  courage  to  cross  the  salon  before  everybody ! " 

"  ROME,  March  25,  1833. 

"  I  was  delighted  to  hear  of  the  sensation  caused  by 
M.  Ingres'  portrait,  though  I  fully  expected  it.  And  I 
was  still  more  pleased  to  hear  that  several  of  his 
pupils  had  distinguished  themselves,  and  so  bore 
witness  to  his  sound  teaching,  and  the  truth  of  his 
principles.  .  .  .  Tell  M.  Ingres  that  I  often  take  his 
favourite  walk  from  the  Academy  to  the  Coliseum 
by  Santa  Maria  Maggiore,  and  always  with  a  little 
sketch-book  in  my  pocket.  I  go  into  the  churches  and 
make  croquis.  If  you  only  knew  the  effect  of  going  into 
Santa  Maria  Maggiore  !  First  one  is  struck  by  the 
mysterious  gloom  which  enfolds  the  choir  and  aisles, 
and  the  perfect  stillness  which  prevails,  two  or  three 
people  only  kneeling  in  a  corner.  A  few  days  ago  I 
went  there,  and  was  startled  by  this  religious  impres- 


74  STA.  MARIA  MAGGIORE. 

sion.  All  of  a  sudden  a  beautiful  chant  rose  from 
some  distant  chapel,  in  the  most  perfect  harmony  with 
all  the  surroundings.  My  eye  grew  accustomed  to 
the  darkness,  and  then  I  could  distinguish  the  figures 
in  Greek  mosaic  which  decorate  the  back  of  the  choir, 
and  which  are  really  awful  in  their  greatness.  Indeed 
these  old  basilicas  impress  me  quite  differently  from 
St.  Peter's,  which  is  a  marvel  of  grandeur  and  richness; 
but  duly  to  estimate  it  you  must  use  your  feet  rather 
than  your  eyes,  for,  as  one  has  often  heard,  it  looks  far 
less  spacious  than  it  really  is." 

"ROME,  April  20,  1833. 

"  At  last  I  am  finally  settled  in  my  own  room  and 
studio,  a  nice  one  of  twenty  feet  square  joining  my 
room.  It  is  adorned  with  some  good  bas-reliefs,  some 
other  casts,  all  I  have  in  the  way  of  engravings  and 
sketches,  and  two  or  three  heads  I  have  drawn  from 
Raffaele."  [Flandrin  also  inscribed  on  one  of  the 
panels  of  his  studio  the  words  of  Psalm  xcii.  4,  "  Thou, 
Lord,  hast  made  me  glad  through  Thy  works,  and  I  will 
rejoice  in  giving  praise  for  the  operation  of  Thy 
Hands."]  "  I  have  left  the  beautiful  view  I  had  over 
the  town  for  a  quieter  scene  ;  my  present  room  looks 
on  to  the  gardens.  Between  and  above  the  laurel 
trees  I  see  the  fine  pines  of  the  Villa  Borghese, 
glimpses  of  the  plain,  and  towering  above  all  the 


FLANDRIN'S  STUDIO.  75 

beautiful  snow-covered  Sabine  hills.  It  is  a  wonderfully 
calm  refreshing  view.  At  this  moment  as  I  write  the 
sky  is  bright  with  stars ;  I  hear  no  sound  save  that  of 
a  fountain,  the  plaintive  monotonous  cry  of  a  bird,  and 
now  and  then  a  distant  clock  striking.  There  is 
nothing  to  remind  one  of  the  town.  All  is  calm, 
silent,  beautiful  •  one  can  think  and  dream  as  one  will. 
Oh  !  this  stillness  has  a  great  charm  for  me,  and  when 
I  feel  it  I  travel  the  more  readily  to  you — I  see  and 
speak  with  you !  But  one  must  come  back  to  realities, 
and  we  shall  not  meet  again  this  long  while  yet. 
Never  mind,  courage!  The  thing  is  to  make  good 
use  of  the  time,  and  that  is  what  I  am  trying  to  do. 
I  am  making  special  studies  from  models  in  order  to 
overcome  the  faults  I  am  conscious  of.  ...  I  hear 
that  the  Duke  of  Orle'ans T  has  ordered  a  picture  of  M. 
Ingres.  I  am  delighted,  because  at  least  that  will  be 
seen,  and  nothing  more  is  needed  for  M.  Ingres' 
paintings." 

To  M.  Lacuria. 

"  ROME,  April  23,  1833. 

"  .  .  .  How  often  I  have  wanted  you  to  enjoy 
things  with  me,  for  at  Paris  we  shared  interests  so 

1  This  picture  was  the  Antiochus  and  Stratonice,  which  was 
bought  by  M.  Demidoff  at  the  sale  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans' 
gallery  in  1853,  and  is  now  the  property  of  the  Due  d'Aumale. 


76  EASTER  DA  Y. 


fully!  And  so  amid  the  Alps,  at  Milan  in  the 
cathedral,  at  Florence  with  Masaccio,  Giotto  and  da 
Fiesole,  at  Rome  with  Raffaele  and  Michael  Angelo  ; 
in  town  or  country,  wherever  I  am  among  beautiful 
things,  I  think  of  my  brothers,  and  always  including 
you.  I  suppose  they  have  shown  you  my  letters,  and 
that  you  know  all  about  me — so  let  me  tell  you  what 
I  saw  on  Easter  Day.  Early  in  the  morning  I  went 
to  Saint  Peter's.  The  great  piazza  was  already  full  of 
neighbouring  peasants,  with  their  wives  and  children, 
and  among  them  a  great  many  pilgrims,  some  coming 
from  far.  The  greater  part  were  sitting  on  the  ground, 
waiting  for  the  benediction,  which  was  to  be  given  at 
noonday.  There  were  wonderfully  beautiful  groups. 
Soon  the  church  also  filled.  The  crowd  in  these 
churches  is  not  a  quiet  one  as  it  is  in  France ;  there 
are  no  chairs,  and  the  people  are  continually  moving 
and  heaving  like  the  waves  of  the  sea.  I  was  fortu 
nate  enough  to  get  a  good  place,  and  to  assist  at  the 
Pope's  high  'mass.  The  ceremonial  is  magnificent. 
After  mass  the  Pope  went  solemnly  through  the 
church,  carried  on  a  throne  by  sixteen  men,  and  pre 
ceded  by  all  the  Bishops  now  in  Rome.  I  never  saw 
such  fine  heads  as  some  of  the  Greek  or  Armenian 
Bishops.  Then  came  all  the  Cardinals,  and  lastly  the 
Pope.  He  was  carried  to  a  tribune  in  the  midst  of 
the  facade  of  Saint  Peter,  which  commands  the 


ROMAN  CHURCHES.  77 

piazza  from  a  height  of  at  least  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet.  Everything  combined  to  make  this  spectacle 
sublime.  The  sun,  which  had  been  clouded,  shone 
forth  at  that  moment  as  the  Pope  appeared  in  the 
tribune,  pitting  on  his  throne,  still  raised  on  his 
bearers'  shoulders.  Then  the  most  absolute  silence 
prevailed  amid  the  vast  crowd ;  the  Pope  rose,  spread 
out  his  hands,  and  gave  his  blessing  '  to  the  city  and 
the  universe.'  At  the  same  moment  the  guns  fired, 
their  thunder  mingling  with  the  sound  of  bells,  drums, 
bands.  I  never  saw  anything  so  majestic  or  so 
solemn.  Long  shall  I  remember  it ! " 

"  May  4. — I  often  go  into  the  churches.  Perhaps  I 
go  too  much  as  a  looker  on,  but  I  cannot  help  think 
ing  of  France,  and  comparing  what  one  sees  there 
with  what  goes  on  here.  The  churches  in  Rome  are 
very  numerous,  and  no  doubt  that  is  one  reason  why 
one  finds  so  few  people  in  them  at  any  given  time.  I 
recall  the  crowds  one  finds  in  the  Lyons  and  even 
in  the  Paris  churches, — how  striking  and  quiet  and 
reverent  they  are  !  Here  people  come  and  go,  talk 

out  aloud,  salute  their  friends  and  acquaintance,  and 

specially  if  it  be  a  high  festival — one  would  hardly 
believe  oneself  to  be  in  a  church  !  We  complain  of 
the  exterior  of  the  Parisian  clergy,  it  is  far  worse 
here  !  But  the  monks  are  admirable  ;  they  are  grave, 
recollected,  and  many  of  them  look  most  entirely 


78  OVERBECK. 


religious.  I  take  to  them  because  they  have  an  open, 
frank  manner,  which  one  does  not  find  among  the 
bourgeois,  and  in  the  matter  of  physical  beauty  they 
are  infinitely  superior,  especially  the  mendicant  orders. 
I  fancy  this  is  because  the  monks  are  peasants,  or 
homines  du  peuple,  and  these  have  preserved  a  very 
remarkable  and  characteristic  physiognomy,  whereas 
the  middle  classes  and  rich  people  are  of  the  most 
ordinary  type." 

"  May  25. — A  few  days  ago  Vibert  and  I  went  to 
see  Overbeck,  who  was  good  enough  to  show  us  his 
works.  We  were  charmed  with  the  religious  spirit 
which  pervades  them ;  and  we  were  specially  struck  by 
an  immense  composition  representing  the  revival  of 
art  and  science  under  the  influence  of  religion.  It  is 
most  beautiful  and  well  conceived,  but  Overbeck  uses 
means  of  expression  which  are  not  his  own ;  he  alto 
gether  takes  the  old  masters'  garb — he  observes 
nature,  but  by  his  own  confession  he  hardly  ever  has 
it  actually  before  his  eyes  when  working.  Moreover, 
he  aims  less  at  painting  than  at  expressing  his  thoughts 
as  though  in  writing.  To  my  mind  he  is  wrong,  for 
if  he  intends  to  make  use  of  painting  as  a  way  of 
writing  his  thoughts,  the  more  true  and  correct  his 
medium  the  better  the  rendering  will  be.  But  we 
came  away  most  pleasantly  impressed,  talking  of  the 
religious  impression  which  Overbeck  knows  how  to 


THE  CAMPAGNA.  79 

give   his  works,   and  which  always  conveys  a  calm 
cheerfulness."  .... 

To  his  Brothers. 

"  ROME,  May  22,  1833. 

"  I  have  just  been  making  a  two  days'  expedition  in 
the  neighbourhood.     If  you  could  but  have  been  with 
us  !     There  were  my  friend  Vibert,  Stiirler,  M.  Ingres' 
pupil,  Thomas,  and  three  others.      I  never  in  all  my 
life  saw  anything  to  compare  to  that  beauty.    We  first 
crossed  a  part  of  the  Campagna,  which  was  new  to 
me,  intersected  by  long  lines  of  aqueducts  :  buffaloes 
and  oxen  grazing  in  the  marshes.      At  Albano  we  left 
the  carriage,  and  walked  by  a  delicious  path  beneath 
the  finest,  most  beautiful  trees  I  ever  saw,  the  sea,  lit 
up  with  sunshine,  sparkling  amid  their  branches.      As 
far  as  Ariccia,  which  is  much  higher  than  Albano,  it 
was  but  one  exclamation  at  the  beauty  !     As  for  me  I 
could  only  be  silent  and  gaze  on  the  beautiful  sea, 
which  we  overlooked  from  on  high,  the  islands  more 
than  twenty  miles  off,  and  the  Campagna  with  Rome 
in  the  midst,   looking  merely  like  a  cloud  of  dust. 
Directly  after  we  came  upon  the  Lake  of  Albano,  the 
bed  of  which  is  the  vast  crater  of  a  volcano,  on  the 
edge  of  which  stands  Castel  Gondolfo.     The  next  day 
we  started  early  on  donkey-back.     My  ass  was  bigger 
than  ordinary,  and  just  like  those  which  Raffaele  has 


So  GROTTA  FERRATA. 

painted  in  the  Loggia.  We  went  slowly  through  fine 
woods  to  the  top  of  Monte  Cavo,  whence  there  is 
the  most  marvellous  panorama  imaginable.  After 
revelling  in  it  a  long  while,  we  came  down  again, 
passed  through  the  village  Rocca  di  Papa,  and  went 
to  Grotta  Ferrata,  where  we  visited  Domenichino's  fine 
frescoes.  Thence  to  Frascati,  and  at  last  back  to 
Rome,  eager  for  work,  as  the  people  in  all  those 
places  struck  me  quite  as  much  as  the  scenery.  The 
women  are  most  exquisitely  beautiful — such  grandeur, 
such  breadth !  Here  indeed  are  Raffaele's  models  ! 
He  took  them  from  this  beautiful  nature — nature  who, 
queenly  and  supreme  as  she  is,  gives  so  freely  to  those 
who  woo  her  with  humble  cravings." 

"ROME,  July  17,  1833. 

"  My  dear  Paul, — I  am  very  sad  after  seeing  our 
dear  comrade  Deroches1  drowned  before  my  eyes 
without  the  possibility  of  saving  him.  Some  twenty 
of  us  had  gone  to  bathe,  only  about  ten  being  able 
to  swim,  of  whom  Deroches  was  one.  They  all  went 
up  about  a  mile  higher  than  we  who  could  not  swim, 
meaning  to  come  down  the  stream.  Only  Deroches 
stayed  behind,  and,  in  spite  of  all  we  could  say,  he  would 

1  Deroches  was  a  young  painter  (not  an  Academy  student) 
working  at  Rome.  His  mother  had  just  joined  him,  and  the 
next  day  he  was  to  start  for  France  with  her.  He  had  stopped 
in  the  midst  of  packing  for  this  bathing  party. 


A  COMRADE  DROWNED.  Si 

cross  the  Tiber ;  but,  coming  back,  he  got  exhausted 
in  the  most  rapid  part  of  the  current.  I  saw  him  raise 
his  hands  for  help,  I  heard  his  last  cry  of  agony.  It 
was  horrible  !  I  shall  never  forget  it !  He  never  re 
appeared,  and  there  was  nothing  to  be  done.  You 
can  imagine  our  despair.  A  moment  after  the  others 
came  down.  Perhaps  if  they  had  been  there  Deroches 
might  have  been  saved  !  Then  his  poor  mother  had 
to  be  told.  The  next  day  we  returned  to  the  spot,  in 
hopes  of  recovering  the  body,  and  rendering  it  the  last 
offices,  but  all  efforts  were  in  vain.  Three  days  later 
I  went  with  two  other  men  to  verify  the  body,  which 
had  been  brought  to  shore.  It  was  him,  but  terribly 
disfigured.  We  buried  him  in  a  church  near  the 
Academy — his  poor  mother  was  gone.  I  cannot  tell 
you  how  all  these  sad  events  have  told  upon  me,  it 
seems  all  like  a  horrible  dream.  That  poor  young 
fellow,  so  full  of  hopes — all  come  to  an  end.  And  now 
M.  Guerin1  is  dead.  He  died  yesterday,  after  more 
than  two  months'  failure.  Madame  Horace  never  left 
him,  and  Bodinier  did  all  that  a  son  could  do  for  him. 
He  is  a  real  friend  !  To-day  is  the  burial,  to-morrow 
a  service.  You  see  what  a  sad  chain  of  events  it  is." 

It  was  only  a  year  before  Flandrin's  earnest  desire 
was    fulfilled,   and   his   brother   Paul    rejoined    him 

1  Horace  Vernet's  predecessor  as  Director  of  the  Academy. 
F 


82  MONE  Y  MA  TTERS. 

at  Rome.  Hippolyte,  as  usual,  was  thoroughly  un 
selfish,  sharing  all  his  small  means  with  his  brother, 
and  even  contriving,  though  not  without  the  greatest 
difficulty  and  constant  self-denial,  to  send  his  mother, 
from  time  to  time,  sums  which,  however  small  they 
may  seem  as  compared  with  the  lavish  expenditure 
of  wealthy  people,  were  large  and  important  both  to 
giver  and  receiver  in  this  case. 

In  March  1833,  Flandrin  writes  to  his  brother 
Paul: — "  Tell  me  in  your  next  letter  if  you  sent  mama 
what  I  told  you,  and  what  you  have  taken  yourself 
from  my  money  in  M.  Ingres'  hands.  I  only  want  to 
know  what  we  actually  have,  for  remember  that  when 
you  need  it  my  money  is  yours  and  theirs  as  much  as 
mine."  And  again  : — 

"Oct.  20,  1833. —  ...  I  send  this  letter  under 
cover  to  our  cousins,  because  I  have  things  to  say 
which  will  not  do  for  a  family  letter.  ...  I  want  to 
know  what  you  have  done  about  the  money  we  had 
in  Paris.  .  .  .  Tell  me,  and  also  about  any  other  little 
resources  you  may  have.  If  only  I  had  my  3000  francs 
at  my  own  disposal,  then  we  should  both  be  well  off, 
whereas  now  I  am  in  a  close  fit  myself.  For  the  last 
ten  months  I  have  been  trying  to  lay  by  100  francs 
for  mama,  but  I  have  not  managed  it.  Yet  you  know 
that  I  am  not  a  spendthrift !  nor  have  I  become  one. 
But  I  will  explain  to  you  how,  with  3000  francs  a  year, 


EXPENSES.  83 


one  may  be  without  a  sou  to  spare.     You  see   2100 
francs   are    deducted    for    board    and    lodging,    and 
medical  advice  if  needed.     So  then  there  remain  900 
francs,  to  pay  for  attendance,  tailor,  shoemaker  and 
laundress,  light,  wood  (and  already  I  am  obliged  to 
have  a  fire  for  my  model),  canvas,  models,  and  all 
other  appliances.     So  you  see  there  is  a  superabun 
dance  in  one  direction  and  positive  stint  in  the  other. 
One  is  very  comfortable  at  the  Academy,  one  wants 
for  nothing,  but  nevertheless  one  has  not  means  to 
get  as  many  models  as  one  requires.     All  the  fellows 
who   do   anything   of  consequence   for  their  envois* 
spend  five   or  six   hundred  francs   more   than   their 
pension,  and  that  is  what  I  am  unable  to  do. — But  to 
return  to  your  matters,  we  shall  find  you  some  re 
sources   here.  .  .  .    You  may  do  these  things  from 
time   to   time,   without  really  neglecting  your  other 
studies.     Oh,  when  you  see  these  landscapes  !    How 
often  I  have  delighted  to  think  of  the  pictures  you 
may  make  from  them  !     You  will  find  Poussin  and  his 
grand  simplicity  at  every  turn.     There  is  no  landscape 
painter  here  who  has  got  eyes  in  his  head,  but  when 
you  see  the  Roman  Campagna  you  will  paint  it  as  it  is. 

1  The  "  envois"  were  pictures  which,  according  to  the  original 
rules  of  the  French  Academy,  her  students  at  Rome  were  bound 
to  send  to  Paris  from  time  to  time  as  guarantees  that  they  were 
really  studying  and  advancing  in  their  profession. 


84  PA  UL  FLANDRIN  A  T  ROME. 

You  will  advise  me,  I  shall  advise  you,  and  we  shall 
renew  the  old  student  life  I  love  so  dearly.  .  .  ." 

Early  in  January  1834,  Paul  Flandrin  arrived  at 
Rome,  and  then  Hippolyte  was  able  to  go  on  working 
at  his  "  envoi,"  which  for  very  excitement  in  the 
delightful  prospect  had  come  to  a  standstill,  and  was 
reposing  with  its  face  to  the  wall,  until  the  young  artist 
should  feel  steady  enough  to  continue  it.  In  the  Sep 
tember  of  1833  Flandrin  had  sent  his  brother  Paul  a 
sketch  of  this  proposed  picture,  in  order  that  it  might  be 
submitted  to  M.  Ingres.  It  was  done  from  nature,  and 
the  sketch  selected  was  chosen  out  of  sundry  attempts. 

"The  subject  is  from  the  Iliad.  At  the  moment 
when  the  Grecian  army  gathered  to  make  a  fresh 
assault  on  the  town,  Polites,  Priam's  youngest  son, 
trusting  to  his  agility,  ventured  alone  among  the 
Trojans  to  remain  without  the  walls,  and  seated  on 
the  tomb  of  the  ancient  ^Esetes,  he  watched  the 
Greeks.  I  want  advice  on  another  matter.  Next 
year  I  must  make  my  copy  (another  envoi),  and  after 
seeing  innumerable  fine  works,  I  have  fixed  on 
Raffaele's  glorious  Galatea.  It  is  a  great  undertaking, 
but  still  I  should  like  it  very  much.  It  has  such 
breadth  and  vigour,  and  is  at  the  same  time  so  fair  I1 

1  Flandrin  eventually  gave  up  copying  the  Farnese  fresco,  and 
his  copie  cf  envoi  was  from  the  School  of  Athens.  It  is  now  to 
be  found  in  the  Ecole  des  Beaux  Arts. 


PICTURES  AND  STUDIES.  85 

If  M.  Ingres  approves,  you  see  what  my  picture  would 
be.  Here,  the  only  idea  is  to  paint  great  pictures,  but 
I  am  less  ambitious,  and  though  I  may  be  laughed  at,  I 
should  be  quite  content  if  it  were  possible  for  me  to 
paint  one  good  figure.  I  hold  that  I  came  to  Rome  not 
so  much  to  paint  pictures  as  to  acquire  the  power  of 
painting  them." 

"  ROME,  Dec.  24,  1833. 

"  .  .  .  When  I  began  my  figure  I  resolved  to  show 
it  to  nobody,  but  you  can't  imagine  how  difficult  that 
is  !  First  of  all,  I  was  obliged  out  of  respect  to  show  it 
to  M.  Horace  Vernet.  He  examined  it  for  a  long  time, 
and  said,  '  I  confess  honestly  that  I  was  not  prepared 
for  this,  it  is  very  original  and  in  very  good  tone.' 
But  one  can't  trust  to  that.  Since  I  have  been  forced, 
will  you,  nill  you,  to  show  it  to  others  who  have  praised 
it  highly,  but  as  to  reckoning  upon  all  that ! !  .  .  .  To 
you.  brother,  I  look  for  real  frankness, — it  is  the  truest 
proof  of  friendship  which  can  be  given." 

About  this  time  Flandrin's  eyes  became  a  source  of 
trouble  to  him ;  the  first  allusion  to  this  anxiety  is  in 
a  letter  to  his  brother  Auguste  dated  May  3,  1834, 
and  his  usual  tenderness  for  his  mother  appears  in  his 
regret  that  a  letter  of  a  few  days'  earlier  date  may  have 
fallen  into  her  hands  and  alarmed  her  about  his  eyes. 
"  I  complained  a  good  deal  of  them,  and  asked  you 


86  VERNET  AND  INGRES. 

to  consult  Cousin  Beaumers.  It  is  a  great  trouble  to 
me  !  It  is  a  weakness  in  my  good  eye,  and  for  the 
last  six  weeks  I  have  done  nothing  in  order  to  give  it 
rest,  which  is  almost  the  only  remedy  suggested.  But 
don't  make  yourself  unhappy,  for  the  last  few  days  it 
has  been  rather  better  ;  only  I  do  regret  all  the  time  it 
makes  me  lose  !" 

It  was  becoming  now  a  question  of  Ingres  succeed 
ing  Horace  Vernet  as  Director  of  the  French  Academy 
in  Rome,  and  in  the  same  letter  Flandrin  alludes  to 
this  : — "  I  also  told  you  not  to  start  for  Paris  till  you 
knew  whether  M.  Ingres  is  coming  to  Rome  as 
Director,  in  which  case  I  should  advise  you  to  come 
here  at  once.  When  you  see  M.  Ingres  you  will  know, 
here  it  is  spoken  of  as  a  thing  settled  and  done.  Give 
him  our  love,  and  beg  him  to  forgive  me  for  not  having 
yet  made  the  little  sketch  he  wants  from  his  picture  at 
the  Trinita  di  Monti.1  I  looked  out  in  vain  for  a 
moment  when  I  could  get  the  ensemble.  However,  as 
the  time  for  sending  envois  grew  near,  I  went  to  try 
and  copy  as  much  as  I  could  see,  when  my  poor  eyes 
put  an  invincible  hindrance  in  the  way.  It  is  very 
hard  that  casual  circumstances  should  make  us  who 
love  our  dear  master  so  much  seem  ungrateful ;  he 
asked  Paul  to  copy  a  head  of  St.  Peter  in  the  Vatican, 

i  Our  Lord  giving  the  keys  to  St.  Peter, — a  picture  now  in 
the  Luxembourg  Gallery. 


ART  ED UCA  TION,  8 7 


and  Paul  has  never  yet  been  able  to  get  near  it.  The 
hall  of  the  Disputa  is  full  of  Russians  making  enor 
mous  copies,  and  during  the  year  and  a  half  I  have 
been  here,  though  I  have  been  longing  to  copy  some 
heads,  I  have  never  succeeded.  But  Paul  has  be 
spoken  a  place,  and  the  first  thing  he  means  to  do  is 
this  head  for  M.  Ingres.  Tell  him  all  this." 

In  spite  of  Flandrin's  personal  pleasure  in  the 
prospect  of  Ingres  coming  to  Rome,  he  regretted 
it  professionally.  "  In  my  private  opinion,"  he 
wrote  to  his  brother,  "  it  is  a  misfortune  for  art.  The 
thought  of  seeing  him  again  delights  me,  but  I  grieve 
that  he  should  forsake  a  position  in  which  he  had  so 
desirable  an  influence  over  art  in  France."  And  in 
another  letter  he  says : — "  In  coming  here  I  regret  to 
see  him  give  up  the  works  he  was  about  to  execute, 
and  which,  being  permanently  located  in  Paris,  (one 
was  the  decoration  of  a  chapel  in  Saint  Sulpice,  the 
other  some  wall  painting  in  the  new  church  of  Notre 
Dame  de  Lorette,)  in  places  open  to  all  the  world, 
would  have  taught  so  many  people,  for  I  believe  that 
in  order  to  correct  the  judgment  of  a  perverted  public 
you  must  constantly  show  them  what  is  really  good. 
M.  Ingres  has  done  this  already,  and  it  has  not  been 
duly  appreciated,  but  it  is  a  question  of  education. 
People  must  have  what  is  really  beautiful  before  their 
eyes  till  they  get  accustomed  to  it." 


88  HORACE  VERNET. 

To  M.  Ingres  himself  Flandrin  wrote  a  little 
later  :— 

"ROME,  July  25,  1834. 

"  My  dear  Master, — Now  that  all  uncertainty  is 
over,  we  may  give  ourselves  up  to  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  you  again,  as  is  but  natural.  You  have  done 
so  much  for  us,  showed  such  real  interest  in  us  !  And 
so  you  are  coming  back  to  beautiful  Rome,  and  I  trust 
it  will  give  you  all  the  rest  and  quiet  you  need,  and 
that  you  will  leave  the  endless  worries  of  Paris  behind 
you.  Meanwhile  you  will  work,  and  your  paintings 
will  be  constantly  teaching  the  right  road  in  France. 

"  M.  Vernet  tells  me  that  he  has  written  to  you,  and 
that  he  by  no  means  congratulates  you  on  coming 
here.  I  could  not  help  telling  him  that  I  thought  it 
would  have  been  kinder  to  say  so  before  your  appoint 
ment  than  after.  If  M.  Vernet  has  had  some  trifling 
annoyances,  it  is  generally  considered  due  to  the 
legerete  of  his  character,  which  nevertheless  is  full  of 
kindness.  I,  who  have  never  received  anything  but 
kindness  from  him,  am  of  this  mind  ;  and  I  only  speak 
out  so  freely  because  I  am  afraid  his  letter  may  have 
prejudiced  you  against  the  students  here,  who  are  all 
full  of  respect  and  esteem  for  you.  I  am  sure  that 
they  have  only  to  know  you  and  love  you.  We  our 
selves  are  only  too  happy  in  regaining  our  dear  master 
and  his  good  advice,  and  we  anticipate  the  day  of 


POLITES.  89 


meeting  longingly.  .  .  . — Your  grateful  and  respectful 
pupil." 

Meanwhile  Flandrin's  envoi,  Polites,  had  reached 
Paris,  and  he  writes  to  Auguste,  September  22, 
1834  : — "Thanks  for  what  you  tell  me  about  my  envoi. 
I  foresaw  M.  Ingres'  judgment;  I  knew  all  its  faults,  but 
I  did  not  feel  that  I  could  correct  them  save  in  another 
picture.  I  was  setting  to  work  in  good  earnest  when 
the  affection  of  my  eyes  came  to  make  me  lose 
this  year  during  which  I  reckoned  on  making  some 
progress.  I  do  regret  it  bitterly.  I  should  have  been 
so  glad  to  show  M.  Ingres  something  better.  But  to 
have  nothing  at  all !  However,  as  my  eyes  are  pretty 
well  now,  I  am  beginning  another  picture.  If  I  could 
express  all  I  feel  it  would  be  better  unquestionably. 
Please  give  my  love  to  M.  Ingres,  and  tell  him  that 
I  see  all  the  justice  of  his  criticisms  on  my  envoi, 
which  are  so  much  good  advice  which  I  shall  try  to 
use.  And  please  thank  him  in  behalf  of  us  all  for 
the  interest  he  takes  in  all  that  concerns  us.  I  think 
he  hardly  knows  how  much  we  love  him.  Make  my 
respects  to  Madame  Ingres,  and  say  that  if  we  may 
know  the  day  of  their  arrival  at  Rome,  and  it  will  not 
annoy  them,  some  of  us  would  like  very  much  to  go 
out  and  meet  them." 


90  PICTURE  FROM  DANTE. 

"ROME,  Oct.  28,  1834. 

"...  I  have  been  glad  to  see  in  the  newspapers 
that  my  figure  has  not  been  thought  ill  of.  Indeed  it 
has  been  more  praised  than  I  expected,  and  I  am  glad 
that  M.  Ingres  has  had  no  annoyance  on  that  score. 
....  I  have  begun  a  picture  which  I  should  like  to 
have  presentable  against  M.  Ingres'  arrival.  The 
canvas  is  ten  feet  high,  the  subject  taken  from  Dante's 
Purgatorio;  eleven  figures  in  the  foreground.  You 
see  I  have  embarked  in  a  great  undertaking,  and  I 
fear  M.  Ingres  may  not  approve  of  it,  but  now  it  is 
some  way  on,  and  I  must  do  my  best.  If  only  you 
had  been  here  you  should  have  been  my  model  for 
Virgil!  Don't  mention  this  picture  to  any  one."' 

"ROME,  Feb.  18,  1835. 

"  My  dear  Papa, —  ...  I  am  working  with  all  my 
might  for  the  Exhibition,  which  opens  in  six  weeks.2 
M.  Ingres  seems  satisfied  with  my  picture,  but  not  so 
I  myself;  I  should  like  to  begin  something  else  in 
hopes  that  it  might  be  better.  Paul  too  works  hard, 
and  I  expect  his  progress  will  be  rapid  under  M. 

1  This  picture  was  exhibited  in  1836,  and  won  the  second 
medal.      It  was  bought  soon  afterward  by  the  town  of  Lyons 
for  3,500  francs,  and  is  now  in  the  Museum. 

2  According  to  the  former  rules  of  the  French  Academy  there 
was  an  exhibition  every  spring  of  the  students'  envois,  after  which 
they  were  sent  to  France. 


TRAVELS.  91 


Ingres'  advice,  and  that  we  shall  soon  see  some  good 
landscapes  of  his.  M.  Ingres  seems  very  happy  here. 
He  has  been  so  well  received  by  all  the  first  artists  of 
every  nation ;  and  he  found  so  much  order,  regularity 
and  harmony  among  the  students,  that  he  was  quite 
touched,  and  has  said  so  repeatedly." 

"  ROME,  May  9,   1835. 

"  My  dear  Auguste, —  .  .  .  Our  exhibition  has  just 
closed;  I  wish  you  and  papa  and  mama  too  could 
have  seen  it,  for  M.  Ingres  expressed  keen  satisfaction, 
and  I  have  been  congratulated  by  many  artists;  but  still 
I  am  not  the  more  satisfied  with  myself,  and  I  am  very 
far  from  going  to  sleep  over  it !  What  really  pleased 
me  (this  is  only  between  ourselves)  was  the  satisfaction 
M.  Ingres  showed  on  the  first  day  of  the  Exhibition. 
While  first  my  figure *  and  then  my  picture  were  being 
hung,  his  eyes  sparkled  with  delight,  and  as  he  passed 
me,  he  gave  me  a  private  squeeze  of  the  hand,  and 
every  time  I  have  seen  him  since  he  has  spoken  in  the 
most  hearty  and  encouraging  manner." 

"PISA,  June\$,  1835. 

"  My  dear  Papa, — A  fortnight  ago  we  set  out,  Paul, 
Oudine'  and  myself.       We  have  already  seen  Viterbo, 
Orvieto,    Bolsena,   Aquapendente,    Sienna,    Volterra, 
A  figure  of  Euripides,  now  in  the  Musee  at  Lyons. 


92  HOT  WEATHER. 


and  many  smaller  places,  which  are  all  interesting 
because  of  what  they  contain  either  in  architecture, 
painting  or  sculpture ;  and  everywhere  we  made 
sketches,  which  will  be  valuable  remembrances,  and 
which  we  shall  like  to  show  you.  It  is  very  pleasant 
to  walk,  but  horribly  tiring  in  such  weather.  It  is 
only  prudent  to  walk  from  three  in  the  morning  till 
nine  or  ten  o'clock,  and  then  again  after  four  or  five  in 
the  afternoon.  Thanks  to  neglecting  this  rule  two  or 
three  times,  we  are  about  the  colour  of  mahogany, 
and  my  slender  beard  and  moustaches  come  out  quite 
white  against  our  tint !  but  we  will  not  make  it  any 
deeper,  and  will  be  more  careful." 

To  Eugene  Roger. 

"ROME,  Aug.  i,  1835. 

"  According  to  promise  I  will  tell  you  all  we  did 
after  parting  at  the  Porta  Perugina.  Florence  was 
lovely  as  seen  from  the  hills  we  ascended,  and  as 
usual  when  leaving  anything  I  became  full  of  regrets. 
We  often  looked  back,  but  in  about  two  hours 
Florence  finally  disappeared.  In  the  middle  of  the 
night  we  halted  at  San  Giovanni,  Masaccio's  country. 
Then  slept  at  Castiglione.  The  next  morning  we 
went  under  Cortona,  but  the  great  heat  prevented  us 
from  even  thinking  of  going  up.  Lake  of  Thrasi- 
mene — awful  heat;  cicali  such  as  I  never  saw  or 


PERUGIA.  93 


heard  before !  Once  at  Perugia  we  were  greatly 
pleased,  and  would  fain  have  stayed  there  more  than 
two  days,  but  Assisi  lured  us  on.  We  were  astounded 
by  our  visit  to  San  Francesco.  It  is  not  merely  the 
finest  collection  of  pictures  of  that  school  I  ever  saw, 
but  they  pleased  me  more  than  any  others.  Cimabue 
and  Giotto  are  marvellously  great !  However,  we 
were  tired  with  the  last  two  months'  work,  and  could 
not  do  much ;  and,  bothered  by  the  daily  storms,  we 
left  on  the  sixth  day,  promising  ourselves  to  return  on 
purpose,  and  we  still  have  to  see  Foligno  and  Spoleto. 
During  the  three  last  days  of  our  journey,  we  did  not 
know  how  to  express  our  admiration  for  the  beautiful 
scenery  through  which  we  were  passing ;  but  amid  all 
this  we  were  pestered  with  one  terrible  nuisance — the 
fleas  !  I  never  saw  anything  like  it.  Only  fancy,  in 
the  carriage  all  four  of  us  had  to  set  to  work  at  one 
fellow's  leg  to  get  him  something  like  clear ! 

"At  Otricali  we  saw  Mount  Soracte  and  Monte 
Cavi  again,  and  I  must  confess  we  were  very  glad  to 
do  so.  We  got  back  to  Rome  two  months  from  our 
start  to  a  day.  Adieu  !  Ton  camarade  bien  affec- 


"  ROME,  Aug.  15,  1835. 

"My  dear  Auguste,— I  understand  your  reasons, 
and  highly  approve  of  your  resolution  not  to  leave  our 


94  PARTINGS. 

parents  while  there  is  any  fear  of  cholera  attacking 
our  city.  It  is  an  excellent  reason,  and  I  would  that 
Paul  and  I  could  help  you  to  comfort  and  encourage 
our  parents.  Your  other  reasons  strike  me  as  feeble. 
Dear  fellow,  do  what  you  think  best,  but  consider  all 
I  told  you,  and  believe  always  in  the  sincere  love  of 
your  brothers.  I  reckon  on  that  love  as  the  real 
happiness  of  my  life — our  life,  I  mean  to  say. 

"  I  should  have  liked  you  to  know  our  musician, 
Ambroise  Thomas,  with  whom  I  have  formed  a  real 
hearty  friendship.  He  taught  me  to  understand  the 
real  beauty  of  music.  Every  one  loves  and  esteems 
him.  For  nearly  three  years  we  have  benefited  by 
him  as  man  and  as  artist,  and  by  his  admirable  talent; 
but  there  is  an  end  to  everything  !  He  must  go,  and 
I  feel  it  very  deeply.  Since  I  have  been  here  I  think 
I  am  much  more  sensitive  to  these  things,  and  yet 
they  have  come  so  often  over  and  over  again !  Nearly 
the  whole  Academy  has  been  changed  since  I  came ; 
I  have  had  time  to  get  attached  to  my  comrades,  and 
then  one  by  one  I  have  seen  them  go,  and  Thomas  is 
the  last,  and  quite  the  greatest  loss  I  can  have. 

Without  Paul  I  should  be  quite  alone The 

lovely  music  which  I  heard  daily  has  become  a 
necessity  to  me.  It  had  become  a  remedy  against  the 
frequent  attacks  of  discouragement  which  murder 
one  and  destroy  the  best  part  of  one's  life 


THE  FLANDRIN  BROTHERS.        95 

P.S. — We  have  just  heard  of  the  abominable  crime  of 
July  28th/  and,  like  every  one  that  loves  his  country, 
we  were  horrified." 

"ROME,  Aug.  16,  1835. 

"  My  dear  Papa, —  ...  As  the  cholera  is  approach 
ing  Rome,  to  spare  you  anxiety  through  exaggeration, 
I  may  as  well  tell  you  that  it  is  at  Leghorn,  sixty  miles 
hence.  At  present  there  does  not  seem  much  to  fear, 
and  it  may  leave  us  on  one  side.  People  say  that  the 
situation  of  Rome,  in  an  entirely  volcanic  country,  is 
favourable ;  we  shall  see.  And  if  it  comes,  Paul  will 
come  to  me,  we  shall  go  out  but  little,  and  spend 
the  evenings  with  M.  Ingres.  After  all,  the  best  thing 
is  to  wait  patiently,  and  have  trust  in  God.  You  bid 
us  pray  to  God  for  you,  dear  Papa.  We  never  fail  to 
do  so,  but  assuredly  we  shall  do  so  now  with  double 
earnestness,  and  on  our  side  we  look  with  comfort  to 
your  prayers  for  us." 

The  close  affection  between  the  three  brothers  is 
very  touching ;  simple  and  unassuming  as  he  was, 
Hippolyte  always  seems  to  be  forced  into  the  position 
of  eldest,  rather  than  Auguste,  who  was  actually  the 
senior.  Probably  Hippolyte's  position  as  an  Academy 
prizeman,  and  his  superiority  of  means,  small  as  that 
was,  were  partly  the  cause  of  his  being  involuntarily 
1  Fieschi's  attempt. 


96  WORK  IN  THE  VATICAN. 

treated  as  leader.  His  little  bits  of  brotherly  advice 
are  generally  accompanied  with  some  unselfish  offer 
or  suggestion.  Thus  he  writes,  urging  Auguste  (who 
was  taking  portraits  at  Lyons)  to  "  work  at  them  as  if 
they  were  studies.  Don't  let  the  thought  of  money 
creep  into  them,  for  it  spoils  whatever  it  touches.  All 
the  same,  don't  let  that  hinder  you  from  asking  a 
better  price  than  you  have  hitherto  done." 

Hippolyte  and  Paul  were  always  longing  to  have 
the  trio  united,  and  in  the  autumn  of  1835  their  wish 
seemed  likely  to  be  realised.  The  French  Government 
commissioned  Ingres,  as  Director  of  the  Academy  in 
Rome,  to  have  copies  made  of  all  Raffaele's  pictures 
in  the  Loggia  and  Stanze  of  the  Vatican,  and  he 
wished  to  associate  Auguste  Flandrin  with  his  brother 
Paul  in  the  work.  It  does  not  exactly  appear  why 
Auguste  declined  the  offer,  but  Hippolyte  writes,  Sept. 
29,  1835 :  "Paul  is  working  at  his  copies  from  Raffaele's 
Loggia.  I  have  seldom  seen  anything  so  difficult  to 
copy,  but  he  is  doing  it  very  well,  and  between  our 
selves,  we  cannot  help  being  very  sorry  that,  after 
being  selected  by  M.  Ingres,  you  should  not  be  able 
to  come ;  for  this  work,  while  it  forces  one  to  make 
real  progress,  would  have  brought  you  in  useful  sup 
plies,  and  would  probably  have  enabled  you  to  try  a 
picture.  However,  it  is  not  quite  a  lost  chance,  for, 
if  you  come  later,  I  hope  M.  Ingres  will  give  you 


ST.  CLAIR.  97 


some  of  the  copies  to  make.  Only  yesterday  he  told 
me  how  sorry  he  was  not  to  see  you  at  work  there. 
....  Paul  works  all  day  at  the  Vatican,  and  I  in 
my  studio  at  my  envoi.  It  is  a  figure  (called  the 
Jeune  Berger) ;  and  besides  that  I  have  a  picture  in 
hand  for  the  magnificent  Cathedral  of  Nantes.  The 
subject  is  fine — St.  Clair  restoring  sight  to  the  blind. 
The  scene  is  at  Nantes,  where  St.  Clair  was  Bishop  in 
the  third  century,  and  my  canvas  is  nine  feet  high.  The 
Bodiniers  arranged  it.  They  proposed  to  me  to  paint 
the  picture,  and  I  accepted  with  great  pleasure,  so  as  to 
do  something  that  has  a  destination.  As  to  the  price  we 
must  say  nothing  about  that.  I  am  doing  fifteen  figures, 
the  size  of  life,  for  a  thousand  francs,  pretty  much  what 
the  expenses  will  be — but  what  would  you  have  ?  I 
would  rather  that  than  be  obliged  to  hire  a  lumber- 
room." 

To  M.  Ambroise  Thomas. 

11  ROME,  Jan.  20,  1836. 

"  ....  As  you  say,  you  have  returned  to  an  active 
life,  I,  as  well  as  all  who  know  you,  hope  that  you 
will  neglect  nothing,  that  you  will  seize  opportunities, 
and  that  before  long  we  shall  hear  you  spoken  of.  If 
such  opportunities  occur,  do  not  lose  your  courage. 
Work,  always  work  on.  It  will  not  be  lost,  even  if 
there  were  no  other  result  than  strengthening  your 
powers.  I  remember  you  used  to  say  yourself  that 


98  FELL  0  W-STUDENTS. 

to  write  well  a  man  must  write  much I  will 

tell  you  what  we  are  all  about.  Joufifroy  has  just  fin 
ished  a  very  beautiful  figure.  Husson,  who  has  three 
months'  extension  of  his  time,  is  getting  on  with  his 
group.  Simart  is  doing  a  great  bas-relief,  which 
promises  well ;  Oudine  a  figure,  with  which  M.  Ingres 
is  delighted.  Jourdy  and  Brian  have  each  a  figure  in 
hand.  In  architecture  I  am  best  acquainted  with 
Baltard's  envoi,  which  is  very  interesting  and  well 
done.  As  to  Elwart,  he  is  composing  comedies, 
dramas,  songs,  and  odes ;  besides  cantatas,  duets, 
trios,  and  ever  so  many  masses.  He  works  as  hard 
as  possible.  For  myself,  I  have  almost  finished  my 
figure,  and  am  getting  on  with  my  picture,  which 
began  with  ten  figures,  and  now  has  seventeen, — a 
little  bit  of  dear  old  Thomas,  which  everybody 
recognises,  is  one." 

To  the  Same. 

"ROME,  March  17,  1836. 

"  Yesterday  M.  Ingres  came  to  me  in  the  salon,  and 
squeezing  my  hand,  said  in  a  whisper,  '  Oh,  how  more 
than  ever  I  miss  him ! '  He  did  not  mention  your 
name,  but  we  are  so  much  in  the  habit  of  talking  of 
you  that  I  quite  understood.  Your  letter  and  the 
little  bit  of  Beethoven  [an  autograph]  pleases  him 
much.  By  this  time  you  will  have  seen  Oudine'. 


A  HURT.  99 


and  perhaps  Elwart.  Instead  of  them  we  have  got 
Farochon,  and  also  Boulanger,  who  seems  a  very  good 
sort  of  fellow.  I  am  so  glad  you  gave  him  your  waltzes. 
I  often  linger  in  the  corridor  to  hear  him  practising 
them.  .  .  .  What  of  Meyerbeer's  new  opera  ?  [the 
Huguenots,  just  out.]  Mind  and  tell  me  in  your 
next  letter." 

To  M.  Lacuria. 

61  ROME,  March  24,  1836. 

"  It  is  so  long  since  I  sent  you  a  friendly  word, 
that,  although  I  have  nothing  to  write  with  save  my 
left  hand  or  the  two  middle  right  fingers,  I  must  not 
hesitate  to  begin.  The  cause  of  my  incapacity  is  this. 
After  finishing  both  my  picture  and  figure,  with  back 
and  chest  broken  and  eyes  worn  out  with  tire,  I  in 
tended  to  set  myself  up  again  by  a  little  expedition 
to  the  sea,  returning  by  the  mountains;  when,  choosing 
some  brushes  in  a  shop,  and  using  my  nail  vigorously 
to  draw  them  out  of  a  packet,  the  wood  split,  and  a 
splinter  went  up  under  the  nail  as  far  as  the  first  joint. 
I  had  to  run  half  over  the  town  to  find  a  surgeon  who 
could  take  it  out,  and  the  result  has  been  a  great  deal 
of  pain,  and  instead  of  a  tour  I  have  been  condemned 
to  keep  my  room  and  be  starved  !  But  don't  be 
alarmed — I  am  much  better. 

"  Janmot  has  a  letter  from  you,  in  which  you  abuse 


ioo  LAC  URIAHS  CRITICISMS. 

yourself  tremendously  for  having — so  you  say — written 
all  manner  of  nonsense  to  me  about  my  picture. 
I  don't  agree  with  you.  I  thought  some  of  your 
advice  very  useful,  and  I  have  kept  it.  My  studio 
is  in  such  a  mess  that  I  can't  just  now  put  my  hand 
on  your  letter,  so  I  cannot  refer  to  it,  but  I  will 
answer  from  memory.  First  of  all ;  as  I  like  your 
tone,  I  was  very  pleased  to  read  your  praise  of  certain 
parts  which  myself,  too,  I  think  the  best.  Then,  look 
ing  at  it  as  a  whole,  you  say  that  you  do  not  recognise 
Hell,  or  the  expression  of  fear  which  is  so  prevailing 
in  Dante.  But  here  you  are  mistaken  ;  it  is  Purgatory 
that  is  treated,  and  the  predominant  feeling  in  Dante's 
mind  is  not  fear,  but  pity  :  a  feeling  which  I  have 
tried  to  express  by  Dante's  action,  that  of  consoling 
the  suffering  souls.  As  to  the  criticism  that  there  is 
a  lack  of  power  in  the  expression,  I  entirely  agree  with 
it.  Dante's  poetry  is  quite  another  thing.  It  has  often 
made  me  afraid  with  a  sublime  fear ;  but  to  convey 
that  one  needs  something  far  beyond  the  talent  of  a 
man  who  can  see,  or  fancies  that  he  sees,  what  is  true 
beauty  at  intervals  as  transient  as  lightning,  and  then 
grows  lost  in  the  analysis  of  form,  tone,  and  all  that  is 
purely  mechanical.  It  is  the  trouble  which  the  me 
chanical  part  is  to  me  which  involves  so  poor  a  result 
in  expression.  I  feel  and  confess  it,  and  yet  (perhaps 
I  may  be  mistaken)  it  does  not  seem  to  me  a  reason 


ENCO  URA  CEMENT.  101 

for  avoiding  difficult  subjects,  and  that  because  one 
never  shakes  off  pettiness  of  handling  so  well  as  when 
subject  to  a  predominant  thought.  I  think  that  ought 
to  enable  one  to  improve  far  more  than  aimless  studies. 
To  my  mind,  the  more  one  asks  the  more  one  gets. 
Ask  a  great  deal,  and  you  will  get  a  little  ;  ask  but 
little,  and  you  get — nothing  !  I  am  not  sure  if  you 
will  understand  me,  anyhow  I  am  sure  that  you  would 
understand  what  I  want  to  say  if  I  were  talking.  It 
is  so  difficult  to  write  these  things  ! 

"  I  have  finished  my  other  picture,  my  Saint  Clair, 
and  M.  Ingres  came  to  see  it.  If  you  only  knew  how 
encouraging  he  was  !  Well,  I  think  I  must  tell  you  all 
about  it,  on  condition  that  it  goes  no  further.  He  came 
in,  sat  down  in  front  of  the  picture,  and  for  a  bit  said 
nothing.  I  was  confused,  and  so  was  Paul.  At  last 
he  got  up;  looked  at  me,  and  embraced  me  warmly — 
you  know  his  way — saying,  '  Well,  mon  ami,  art  is  not 
lost,  and  I  have  not  been  useless  !'  I  felt  very  small 
to  be  the  subject  of  such  words,  and  did  not  know 
how  to  speak,  only  my  tears  fell.  The  dear  good  man 
was  so  happy  !  I  shall  never  forget  that  minute  !  But 
I  could  only  tell  such  a  thing  to  a  friend  like  yourself, 
my  dear  Lacuria;  you  must  see  as  well  as  I  do  that  it 
would  damage  me  in  the  sight  of  others. 

"  I  remember  your  asking  me  some  time  ago  if  I 
really  loved  this  country?  Somehow  I  cannot  ex- 


LOVE  FOR  ROME. 


press  what  I  feel.  I  love  France  dearly — my  parents 
and  friends  are  there,  and  assuredly  I  love  it  best ;  but 
when  I  think  of  leaving  Rome  I  am  heart-broken. 
When  I  look  from  my  window  on  that  beautiful  plain, 
and  the  fine  chain  of  Sabine  mountains — those  fine 
mountains  with  their  grand  old  names ;  and  then  at  our 
lovely  garden,  and  at  the  old  palace  where  I  dwell ; 
when  I  see  all  this  from  one  window,  and  then  turning 
to  the  other  I  command  the  whole  town,  with  the  sea 
line  in  the  horizon,  I  cannot  bear  to  think  of  leaving 
it  all.  It  will  cost  me  a  great  deal,  but  it  must  be 
done  ;  I  feel  that  I  ought  not  to  live  here.  .  .  ." 

To  M.  Ambroise  Thomas. 

11  ROME,  April  30,  1836. 

"...  Yesterday  I  was  alone ;  it  was  very  fine,  and 
I  went  to  the  upper  galleries  of  the  Coliseum,  where 
I  had  never  been  since  you  left.  How  childish  one 
is  !  Coming  to  that  last  arch,  I  was  quite  overcome. 
However,  I  got  there,  and  nothing  is  changed,  except 
that  the  two  little  seats,  intact,  are  surrounded  with 
big  plants  and  flowers.  I  thought  of  you,  and  recalled 
what  you  said  one  day  as  we  were  going  up  the  Pincio, 
about  our  being  happy  if  some  day  we  could  make  a 
name,  and  attain  some  reputation  as'  artists.  I  re 
echoed  you ;  and  now  we  must  remind  one  another  of 
it,  for  such  a  stimulus  is  helpful.  There  are  still  two 


GOLD  MEDALS.  103 


years  before  we  shall  meet  again, — two  of  our  best 
years  :  they  should  be  well  spent." 

Amid  all  this  enthusiastic  devotion  to  his  art  and 
artist  friends,  the  parents  at  Lyons  were  never  for 
gotten  ;  the  same  warm  outpourings  of  love  which 
went  to  them  from  the  young  boy  first  leaving  home 
continued  to  cheer  M.  and  Mme.  Flandrin  in  regular 
succession  from  Rome,  and  one  of  the  first  thoughts, 
amid  any  credit  won  or  prizes  obtained,  was  sure  to 
be  the  pleasure  it  would  give  at  home.  Thus  he  writes 
to  his  parents  (June  i,  1836)  :  "  .  .  .  I  often  look  at  a 
little  sketch  I  made  long  ago,  of  Lyons  from  the 
heights  of  Montesuy.  I  think  of  you  there,  waiting 
for  us,  and  then  the  time  seems  very  long  !  But,  on 
the  other  hand,  when  I  think  of  the  work  done,  it 
seems  so  little,  and  time  to  have  gone  so  quickly  by  ! 
However,  I  can  conscientiously  say  that  I  have  worked 
hard,  and  I  feel  that  I  have  advanced." 

And  to  Ambroise  Thomas  (June  14)  he  says :  "  I 
hear  from  you  and  from  Bodinier  that  I  have  got  a 
medal.  I  am  very  glad  for  my  father's  sake.  Bodinier 
will  give  it  to  him  en  passant" 

This  was  a  second  class  gold  medal  for  the  picture 
from  Dante,  and  the  following  year  the  Saint  Clair 
won  a  first  gold  medal.  Flandrin  was  then  preparing 
for  his  last  envoi, — a  picture  now  at  Lisieux.  He  was 


104  A  FRIENDLY  MODEL. 

very  reserved  about  it,  and  made  all  his  fellow-students 
promise  not  to  look  at  it  until  it  was  finished,  wishing 
to  be  uninfluenced  by  any  comments  or  criticism  save 
those  of  his  brother  Paul.  So  far  did  he  carry  this 
fancy,  that  wanting  very  much  to  use  a  student, 
Dominique  Papety  by  name,  as  a  model — Papety 
having  remarkably  well-formed  hands — Flandrin  almost 
gave  him  up  rather  than  reveal  his  secret !  The  good- 
natured  fellow  met  his  friend's  difficulty  by  offering  to 
come  and  sit  blindfold  !  and  in  this  way  the  resolution 
was  kept.  Flandrin  writes  to  his  friend,  Ambroise 
Thomas : — 

"  ROME,  June  14,  1836. 

"  I  have  fixed  upon  a  Scriptural  subject  I  have 
always  loved,  and  which  M.  Ingres  approves  highly.  I 
take  the  moment  when  the  Jewish  women  brought  their 
children  to  Jesus  Christ  that  He  might  bless  them,  the 
disciples  repulsing  them,  and  Jesus  rebuking  the  dis 
ciples,  saying,  '  Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  unto 
Me,  and  forbid  them  not,  for  of  such  is  the  Kingdom 
of  Heaven.'  I  can  imagine  a  wonderfully  beautiful 
scene ;  the  grand  meaning  and  feeling  stamping  our 
Lord's  words  afford  a  magnificent  opening,  but  it  is  an 
alarming  thing  to  undertake.  M.  Ingres'  approbation 
encourages  me  greatly.  I  was  afraid  he  might  have 
preferred  something  else,  but,  on  the  contrary,  he  was 
delighted  with  this  subject.  All  this  is  between  our- 


EXHIBITION  AT  L YONS.  1 05 

selves,  please.  Until  my  picture  has  got  on,  I  shall 
say  nothing  about  it  to  any  one.  Besides,  I  shall  hardly 
begin  to  paint  it  before  January,  having  my  sketch  to 
make,  a  copy,  and  a  journey  to  Naples." 

"  ROME,  July  8,  1836. 

"  My  dear  Auguste, — Flacheron  tells  me  that  there 
is  to  be  an  Exhibition  of  Paintings  at  Lyons 'in  Octo 
ber,  and  as  I  often  grieve  that  papa  never  sees  any 
thing  we  are  doing,  I  have  a  mind  to  send  my  Dante. 
Flacheron  also  says  something  which  encourages  me 
to  do  this,  namely,  that  the  town  will  have  from  forty 
to  fifty  thousand  francs  to  spend,  and,  who  knows? 
they  might  perhaps  buy  my  picture !  M.  Ingres  is 
vexed  that  it  was  not  bought  at  Paris,  but  there  is  no 
good  thinking  about  that  now — it  is  over.  So  will  you 
find  out  about  the  exhibition,  and  when  pictures  should 
be  sent  in,  and  then  write  to  Lacuna,  or  any  one  else 
who  cares  enough  for  us  to  take  the  trouble,  and  ask 
him  to  go  to  the  Ecole  des  Beaux  Arts,  and  reclaim 
the  Dante  and  the  Shepherd,  and  have  them  packed 
with  the  frames  they  had  in  the  Louvre.  It  must  all 
be  done  as  cheaply  as  possible,  for  they  have  already 
cost  me  about  eight  hundred  francs,  and  I  am  hardly 
disposed  to  sell  the  clothes  off  my  back  for  so  uncer 
tain  a  chance. 

"  I  am  so  glad  to  tell  you  that  the  other  day,  while 


io6  PICTURES  SOLD. 


Paul  was  working  at  the  Vatican,  a  fellow-student 
helped  me  to  sell  two  of  his  landscapes.  That  gives 
him  a  little  nest-egg  of  eight  hundred  francs,  which 
came  at  a  good  time,  for  that  very  morning  he  found  he 
only  possessed  a  baiocco  and  a  half,  or  about  two  sous  ! 
I  am  particularly  glad,  because  I  was  afraid  he  would 
not  have  been  able  to  come  to  Naples  with  me,  and  I 
could  not  have  helped  him.  Working  as  I  do,  I  am 
not  rich  enough  to  lend  fifteen  francs  to  anybody  ! — 
not  a  very  brilliant  position,  as  you  perceive,  but  so 
happy  in  many  ways,  that  I  think  I  shall  always  look 
back  to  this  time  longingly!" 

The  Dante  was  exhibited  at  Lyons,  and  was  bought, 
as  Flandrin  hoped,  by  the  municipality  for  3500 
francs.  His  figure  of  Euripides  was  also  bought  by 
the  town  for  TOGO  francs.  The  Shepherd,  which  was 
sent  to  Lyons  with  Dante,  was  going  to  be  pur 
chased  by  Flandrin's  old  Lyonnese  master,  Legendre- 
He'ral,  but,  with  his  usual  kindliness  and  liberality, 
Flandrin  refused  to  accept  a  price,  and  gave  it  to  the 
Professor,  who  in  return  volunteered  to  execute  a  bust 
of  his  father  for  Hippolyte.  This  was  joyfully  ac 
cepted.  He  bids  Auguste  tell  Heral  "  how  grateful 
we  are,  and  how  pleased  at  the  prospect.  I  cannot 
say  how  delighted  I  am  to  have  a  portrait  of  our 
father,  and  by  him  !  Tell  him  that  I  think  my  Shep- 


ROMAN  FEVER.  107 


herd  has  found  a  better  position  than  I  looked  for, 
and  that  his  approval  is  a  weighty  encouragement  to 
me.  He  must  excuse  my  writing  myself,  my  head 
is  very  weak,  and  I  cannot  get  rid  of  fever.  We  have 
lately  been  at  Albano,  to  try  change  of  air  as  a  last 
remedy.  The  first  few  days  we  were  both  better,  but 
the  fever  returned,  and  now  we  are  back  at  Rome, 
waiting  to  see  what  time  will  do.  However,  Paul  is 
something  better,  and  perhaps  he  will  shake  it  off 
before  the  spring.  Don't  say  anything  about  it  to 
papa  and  mama ;  but  I  must  confess  to  you  that  it  is 
very  unfortunate  for  us  to  be  losing  such  precious 
time  ! " 

It  was  a  terrible  time  of  fever,  and  all  the  strangers 
residing  in  Rome  seem  to  have  suffered.  Flandrin 
writes  to  Ambroise  Thomas  : — 

"ROME,  Aug.  29,  1836. 

"  .  .  .  .  This  is  one  of  the  worst  years  for  fever. 
In  the  Villa  Medici  alone,  M.  and  Mme.  Ingres, 
Simart,  Jourdy,  and  Boulanger  (twice  over)  have  had 
it,  and  I  am  just  getting  better.  I  was  comfortimg 
myself  by  preparing  for  our  journey  to  Naples,  where 
we  were  to  meet  Baltard,  and  my  eldest  brother  was  to 
join  us.  Our  plans  were  magnificent !  But  it  all  had 
to  be  given  up.  Cholera  has  broken  out  severely  at 
Ancona;  all  communication  with  the  kingdom  of 


icS  A  STILL  LIFE. 


Naples  is  suspended,  no  passports  given ;  and  I  have 
written  to  my  brother  to  defer  his  journey,  for  if  the 
cholera  should  come  here,  it  would  be  stupid  for  him 
to  come  so  far  to  meet  it !  So  farewell  to  lovely 
Naples,  which  I  accept  on  the  faith  of  your  descrip 
tions.  Without  having  ever  seen  it,  I  seem  to  know 
it,  and  even  to  have  most  lively  recollections  thereof ! 
I  should  have  looked  for  well-known  footsteps,  and 
names  inscribed.  I  feel  quite  familiar  with  the  Hermit 
of  Vesuvius'  book  !  Doesn't  all  this  make  you  think 
that  one  forgets  less  quickly  at  Rome  than  in  Paris  ? 
It  may  be  so,  eh  ?  and  does  not  seem  unlikely.  Ah, 
well,  mon  ami,  all  this  charming  prospect  of  journey, 
excursions  and  expeditions  has  been  exchanged  for 
fever  and  the  alarm  of  cholera  ! 

"  My  life  is  perhaps  still  more  recluse  than  when  you 
were  here,  and  that  is  a  year  and  nine  days  ago,  which 
upon  calculation  shows  me  that  I  have  still  more  than 
sixteen  months.  Poor  dear  Rome,  how  shall  I  leave 
her  ?  The  other  night,  before  going  to  bed,  I  took  a 
chair  and  sat  out  on  the  balcony  to  enjoy  the  moon 
light  view  of  the  town.  It  was  one  of  those  nights 
when  the  light,  coming  from  behind  the  masses  of 
buildings,  throws  them  out  so  well.  The  frogs  croak 
ing  and  the  fountain  splashing  did  not  mar  the  silence 
which  prevailed,  their  monotony  almost  seemed  to 
blend  with  and  increase  it.  There  was  not  a  motion. 


CHOLERA  AT  NAPLES.  109 

not  a  light.  Just  as  I  was  going  in  a  few  chords  of  a 
piano  fell  upon  my  ear — and  oh  !  they  brought  back 
so  much  that  ....  Basta  !  I  was  only  going  to  tell 
you  that  I  should  be  very  sorry  to  leave  Rome, 
although  it  will  be  to  see  my  parents  and  friends." 


The  alarm  of  cholera  was  serious.  Hippolyte  wrote 
a  little  later  to  Auguste  : — "  Cholera  is  making  great 
destruction  at  Ancona,  but  as  yet  it  has  not  advanced 
further.  The  French  garrison  has  behaved  very 
grandly.  Finding  that  the  terrified  natives  forsook 
the  sick,  General  Cubieres  asked  for  volunteers  to  go 
and  nurse  the  cholera  patients,  and  almost  all  the  sol 
diers  came  forward,  and  rivalled  one  another  in  zeal. 
Supplies  were  wanting,  for  the  neighbourhood  sent  in 
nothing ;  but  the  French  General  set  that  straight  by 
threatening  to  make  a  sally  with  the  garrison  and  pick 
up  whatever  he  could  lay  hands  on  for  the  town." 

The  malady  spread  to  Naples  in  spite  of  precautions, 
and  Flandrin  had  reason  to  rejoice  that  he  had  not 
gone  there.  He  writes  to  his  old  friend  Eugene 
Roger  (October  3 1,  1836)  :— "  ....  Baltard  has  not 
returned,  for  the  cholera  broke  out  at  Naples  before 
he  left  it,  and  he  is  obliged  to  make  a  sort  of  quarantine 
for  three  weeks  at  Sora,  with  his  wife  and  child.  It  was 
partly  his  own  fault,  for  it  was  not  hard  to  foresee  how  it 
would  be.  At  Naples  there  are  already  as  many  as  two 


THE  FRENCH  AMBASSADOR, 


hundred  and  fifty  cholera  cases  daily.  It  seems  as  if 
it  must  come  here  before  long,  and  yet  who  knows  ?  It 
has  spared  Lyons.  You  have  heard  how  grandly  our 
fine  soldiers  have  behaved  at  Ancona;  the  Italians  let 
them  have  an  easy  monopoly  of  courage  and  self- 
devotion.  I  must  tell  you  a  story.  Just  lately  one 
of  our  last  year's  students,  Famin,  an  architect,  was 
making  an  expedition  to  Anagni  without  a  passport, 
when  the  Governor  of  the  town  arrested  him,  and  sent 
him  from  one  prison  to  another  in  chains.  As  soon 
as  he  got  free  and  reached  Rome,  he  went  straight  off 
to  M.  de  Latour-Maubourg.  It  was  nine  in  the  morn 
ing.  The  Ambassador  wrote  off  a  thundering  letter  to 
the  Cardinal  Secretary  of  State,  who  appeared  himself 
by  noon  to  make  excuses  for  the  Government,  and  to 
say  that  a  courier  was  already  despatched  to  recall  the 
Governor  of  Anagni,  and  order  him  to  Saint  Angelo, 
where  he  has  now  been  a  week.  The  Ambassador 
further  insisted  on  a  circular  describing  the  assault 
and  its  punishment  being  sent  to  all  the  Governors  of 
towns  in  the  Roman  State.  We  are  well  pleased  with 
our  Ambassador,  and  very  grateful  to  him  for  avenging 
us  of  such  treatment  so  speedily. 

"  What  you  tell  me  of  X.  is  very  grievous 

Accumulating  work,  undertaking  everything,  and  re 
ceiving  money,  is  not  all  that  a  man  has  to  think  of ! 
I  agree  with  you,  that  in  such  matters  one's  character 


FLANDRIN  AND  HIS  MO  THER.  1 1 1 

as  a  man  must  be  borne  in  mind  as  well  as  one's 
talents  as  an  artist. 

"  We  have  had  a  terrible  autumn.  Rome  has  been 
devastated  with  fever,  and  at  the  Academy  almost 
everybody,  from  the  Director  to  the  porter,  has  had 
their  turn.  I  am  just  getting  over  my  third  attack, 
and  I  very  much  fear  that  it  will  not  let  me  get  my 
copy  quietly  done." 

"ROME,  Feb.  12,  1837. 

"  My  dear  good  Mama, —  ....  I  am  quite  sure  you 
shared  my  pleasure  when  the  town  bought  my  pictures. 
It  is  a  piece  of  good  fortune  which  I  want  to  share 
with  you.  I  know,  dear  little  mother,  how  much  you 
dislike  living  in  a  dirty  apartment,  and  if  nothing  has 
been  done  to  ours  since  I  left,  I  am  sure  by  this  time 
it  must  be  very  little  to  your  taste.  So  will  you  please, 
dearest  mama,  to  do  me  a  pleasure,  and  accept  the  little 
sum  of  one  hundred  francs  for  some  improvements,  if 
they  can  be  done  without  putting  papa  out  ?  In  that 
case  you  must  take  the  money  for  anything  else  you 
will.  Auguste  will  be  my  banker  and  give  it  you. 
You  will  take  it,  dear  little  mother,  won't  you,  and 
try  to  beautify  your  small  abode?  Auguste  was  to 
have  come  here  in  January,  but  I  begin  now  to 
despair  of  seeing  him  before  I  go.  Yet  he  might 
have  got  so  much  good  from  it.  I  hope  at  least  he 
will  remember  how  persistently  I  have  begged  and 


ii2  MOCCOLETTI. 

entreated  him  to  come.  Adieu,  dearest  mother.  I 
pray  daily  for  you  and  for  our  dear  father.  I  am 
quite  sure  that  neither  do  you  forget  us,  and  I  attribute 
all  the  good  things  which  befall  me  to  my  darling 
mother's  prayers." 

To  M.  Ambroise  Thomas. 

"ROME,  Feb.  13,  1837. 

"...  After  a  dreary  rainy  winter,  spring  begins  to 
cheer  us  now.  The  bright  sun  and  flowering  trees 
recall  one  of  our  first  walks — we  bought  fir  cones  and 
oranges  at  the  Quattre  Fontane,  and  went  to  eat  them 

at    Caracalla's  Baths Here,  as  the  cholera  is 

dreaded,  the  Carnival  was  forbidden ;  but  as  the 
Romans  bore  the  privation  patiently,  though  regret 
fully,  they  were  permitted  to  have  the  Moccoletti  on 
the  last  day.  The  Corso  was  full,  and  everything 
seemed  all  right,  but  the  first  moccoletti  were  hissed 
and  forcibly  extinguished  :  there  was  quite  a  hubbub 
with  carriages  getting  out  of  the  row,  shops  shutting, 
and  all  the  rest  of  it ;  and  now  it  is  called  *  the  Revo 
lution  of  the  Moccoletti,'  and,  as  usual,  the  Romans 
say  that  its  chief  promoters  were  the  students  of  the 
French  Academy. 

"Your  Carnival  cannot  have  been  very  gay  either, 
with  your  influenza.  We  have  been  very  unfortunate 
here — poor  M.  Ingres  has  been  very  ill Paul 


FEVER  AGAIN.  113 


has  not  had  any  fever  for  two  months,  so  I  hope  he  has 
done  with  it;  but  as  for  me,  I  don't  seem  to  have  had 
my  share,  for  it  keeps  coming  back  twice  in  each  week. 
I  am  waiting  impatiently  for  the  amendment  which 
the  doctors  say  spring  will  make.  It  has  thrown  me 
back  so  much,  that  I  can  assure  you  I  shall  have  no 
difficulty  in  finding  occupation  from  now  till  April 
1838. 

"Feb.  23. — My  letter  was  delayed  by  an  attack  of 

fever,  but  to-day  I  am  better You  ask  if  I 

often  go  over  the  scenes  of  our  favourite  walks  ?  Alas, 
for  a  long  time  I  have  scarcely  stirred  !  I  have  only 
been  once  to  Torre  de  Schiavi  since  you  left,  the 
violets  at  Villa  Pamfili  were  gathered  without  us,  and 
since  the  day  we  went  together  to  the  Villa  Mellini 
I  have  never  been  able  to  return.  Tre  anni,  bagatella  /" 

"ROME,  June  18,  1837. 

"  My  dear  Auguste, —  ....  You  say  that  we  shall 
soon  see  you,  and  that  I  am  not  to  set  off  without 
you ;  but,  my  dear  fellow,  I  am  not  my  own  master, 
especially  in  my  present  state  of  health.  I  am  still 
beset  with  fever,  and  the  doctors  say  the  month  of 
September  must  not  find  me  in  Rome,  or  that  I  shall 
assuredly  be  ill  all  next  year  again.  So  I  must  try  to 
get  away  in  the  beginning  of  August.  You  can 
imagine  that  it  is  grievous  after  having  worked,  and 


H4  DEPRESSION. 

my  works  having  had  so  much  more  success  than  I 
expected,  to  be  hindered  just  when  a  much  more 
important  work  is  in  hand,  and  when  I  want  to 
collect  all  my  strength,  and  make  a  sort  of  final  effort. 
I  feel  that  I  am  almost  losing  even  the  wish  to 
succeed.  Illness  and  weakness  have  given  me  a  sort 
of  disgust  and  depression  which  follow  me  everywhere. 
Shall  I  really  be  obliged  to  give  up  all  my  hopes? 
But,  after  all,  I  am  not  always  in  this  disheartened 
state.  A  few  days  without  fever  restores  some  energy, 
and  I  feel  my  love  of  work  again.  I  have  made  a 
beginning  of  my  great  picture  in  one  of  these  intervals, 
but  one  ought  to  be  very  strong  to  carry  a  thing  like 
that  through." 

"FLORENCE,  Aug.  24,  1837. 

"  My  dear  Auguste, —  ....  In  the  last  days  of 
July,  after  the  terrible  news  from  Sicily,  a  few  cases  of 
cholera  appeared  in  Rome,  where  the  alarm  was  very 
great,  because  Government  and  the  doctors  have 
done  everything  they  could  to  persuade  people  that  it 
is  contagious.  I  had  been  for  two  months  without 
fever,  and  was  working  at  my  last  picture,  unfortu 
nately  harder  than  I  had  strength  for.  I  was  to  start 
in  August,  so  as  to  avoid  the  fever  season,  but  fatigue 
brought  it  on  too  soon ;  and  just  as  the  first  cases  of 
cholera  appeared  I  fell  ill  again,  and  the  remedies 
caused  violent  inflammation.  After  some  days  of 


Q  UARANTINE.  i 1 5 


uncertainty  as  to  whether  the  plague  was  among  us 
or  not,  we  were  reassured,  and  M.  Ingres  and  our 
friends  advised  us  to  go  away  and  try  to  cut  my  fever 
short,  for  fear  I  might  have  it  through  another  year. 
Alas,  if  I  could  have  foreseen  what  has  happened  I 
would  not  have  gone,  and  I  am  sure  that  I  should 
not  have  suffered  as  much  in  sharing  the  danger  with 
them  as  amid  the  fatigue  and  anxiety  we  have  experi 
enced.  We  started,  thinking  that  this  attack  was  only 
much  the  same  as  some  thirty  or  forty  attacks  I  have 
had  since  I  was  at  Rome.  We  took  the  Sienna 
route  for  Florence,  August  3rd,  in  a  fearful  heat,  and 
with  a  vetturino,  who  went  like  a  tortoise,  only  getting 
on  some  ten  or  twelve  lieues  a-day.  And  oh  !  what  I 
suffered,  being  ill  to  begin  with.  When  we  reached 
the  Tuscan  frontier  we  were  met  by  two  men,  who 
informed  us  that  we  must  go  back,  as  the  Tuscan 
Government  had  set  up  a  cordon  sanitaire;  and  we 
had  to  go  and  lie  in  quarantine  at  Aquapendente 
for  a  fortnight,  a  horrid  little  town.  We  were  five 
Frenchmen  and  one  German,  all  artists,  and  all  very 
good  friends.  We  agreed  to  go  and  make  out  the 
time  at  Perugia,  a  very  beautiful  place,  on  a  hill, 
and  with  a  much  better  air.  When  we  got  there 
they  hesitated  whether  they  would  let  us  in  or  not. 
It  ended  by  our  being  admitted,  and  then  I  got  some 
fresh  fever.  However,  the  quiet  suited  me,  and  I  was 


ii6  FLORENCE. 


mending.  Soon  the  news  from  Rome  grew  alarming, 
and  we  heard  from  a  crowd  of  fugitives  that  cholera 
had  broken  out  very  decidedly;  that  there  were  as 
many  as  two,  sometimes  even  three  hundred  deaths 
daily,  and  that  our  good  M.  Sigalon  was  one  of  the 

first  victims How  I  regretted  having  left  M. 

Ingres  and  the  Academy  under  such  circumstances  ! 
However,  as  it  was  impossible  to  return,  and  our 
quarantine  was  over,  we  set  out  for  Florence.  When 
we  reached  the  frontier  they  signalled  to  us  to  go  back, 
and  some  soldiers  came  out  to  arrest  us.  But  at  last, 
after  a  great  deal  of  debating,  we  were  admitted. 
Two  hours  later  we  were  dining  at  Arezzo,  thinking 
ourselves  lucky  in  having  at  last  crossed  the  Tuscan 
frontier,  when  suddenly  we  heard  that  the  cholera  had 
broken  out  in  Florence.  Just  think  of  this.  But  we 
had  gone  too  far  to  turn,  so  we  went  on,  and  on 
arriving  here  we  found  that  there  have  only  been  one 
or  two  cases,  which  it  is  hoped  will  not  have  any  suc 
cession.  If  it  should  increase  we  are  ready  to  start, 
without  quite  knowing  where  to  go,  for  cholera  is 
everywhere, — at  Rome,  Naples,  Genoa,  Leghorn, 
Venice.  So  you  see,  my  dear  fellow,  we  cannot  give 

you  any  advice  as  to  your  journey My  poor 

picture !  it  will  indeed  be  fortunate  if  it  ever  gets 
decently  finished.  However,  we  must  hope  for  better 
times." 


MANTUA.  117 


To  M.  Eugene  Roger. 

"SERMIDA,  Oct.  u,  1837. 

"  Here  we  have  been  for  several  days  watching  the 
Po  rush  by,  and  waiting  until  we  can  cross  it.  I  must 
tell  you  how  it  has  all  come  about.  At  Padua  we 
devoured  the  Titians  and  Mantegnas,  but,  above  all, 
the  Giottos  in  Santa  Maria  del  Arena.  What  a  jewel 
that  chapel  is  !  What  soft  sweet  harmony  among  the 
Titians  !  I  approve  your  choice.  You  will  preserve 
a  thing  like  to  perish,  and  which  is  most  admirable.  I 
imagine  you  to  be  at  work  by  this  time.1  After  three 
days  we  started  for  Vicenza  and  Verona.  Our  first 
business  was  to  find  out  whether  Verona  was  healthy, 
and  would  do  for  our  quarantine.  On  first  asking  we 
were  told  that  the  town  was  sanissima,  and  a  certificate 
to  that  effect  was  given  us,  but  unfortunately  we  could 
learn  nothing  for  certain,  so  we  started  for  Peschiera 
and  the  Lago  di  Garda.  And  at  Mantua  they  could 
hardly  guarantee  the  quarantine  we  proposed  keeping; 
so  there  was  nothing  for  it  but  to  go  to  the  frontier 
and  make  sure.  We  saw  Giulio  Romano's  frescoes  in 
the  Palazzo  del  Te,  and  I  was  surprised,  amazed. 
Certainly  in  some  of  them  he  comes  out  like  an  old 

1  Eugene  Roger  had  undertaken  to  copy  a  fresco  of  Titian's 
in  the  Scuola  di  Sant'  Antonio  at  Padua.  His  copy  is  now  at  the 
Ecole  des  Beaux  Arts. 


ii8  COMING  CHANGES. 

master.  We  stayed  there  three  days,  not  failing  to 
visit  the  Palazzo  del  Te  daily ;  and  we  should  have 
been  glad  to  work  there,  but  the  fever  traces  we  saw 
on  so  many  faces  frightened  us.  I  have  not  had 
any  actual  fever  since  we  parted,  but  I  feel  that  this 
air  is  bad  for  me.  I  am  still  weak." 

To  M.  Ambroise  Thomas. 

"  ROME,  Dec.  10,  1837. 

"  Only  twenty  days  more  of  my  time  here  !  The 
end  is  coming,  but  I  shall  feel  it  much  more  than  you. 
I  have  still  some  troublesome  things  to  do.  I  have 
to  leave  this  quiet  peaceful  position,  this  beautiful 
country,  which — fever  notwithstanding — I  love  more 
and  more — dear  M.  Ingres  and  our  comrades.  Of 
course  I  shall  have  my  country  and  parents  and 
friends  instead,  and  I  appreciate  the  compensation ; 
but  still  in  my  heart  there  is  a  sad  gloomy  thought  of 
parting  from  the  soothing  stillness  one  enjoys  here, 
to  go  and  fight  in  that  ant-hill  for  bread  to  live 
upon !  If  at  least  I  could  have  waited  till  I  had 
decided !  But  no,  I  feel  that  I  am  pushed  on,  and 
that  I  must  leave  in  three  weeks.  You  advise  me  to 
go  at  once  and  finish  my  picture  in  Paris,  but  indeed 
I  cannot,  my  dear  fellow.  I  am  sure  that  my  picture 
would  suffer,  and  it  has  already  suffered  enough 
through  my  bad  health  and  the  unfortunate  circum- 


DEA  TH  OF  HIS  FA  THER.  1 1 9 

stances  amid  which  it  has  been  produced.  But  I  am 
doing  all  I  can.  In  fear  and  trembling  at  the  short 
time  remaining,  I  am  using  that  to  the  utmost.  .  .  . 
My  plans  are  as  follows,  supposing  cholera  and  other 
things  to  agree.  I  hope  to  have  pretty  well  finished  my 
picture  by  the  middle  of  April.  Then  I  shall  go  to 
Naples  and  stay  there  a  month.  Thence  return  to 
take  leave  of  Rome,  and  take  the  steamboat  for 
Marseilles.  Then  six  weeks  or  two  months  at  Lyons, 
and  by  August  I  hope  to  embrace  you.  But  you  shall 
hear  again.  At  this  moment  I  hear  the  pifferari. 
How  they  recall  past  times.  Yesterday  evening  we 
went  to  the  Ponte  Molle  to  meet  Roger.  It  was  so 
pleasant.  Alas  !  alas !  I  shall  never  do  that  again  for 
any  one,  unless  it  be  for  the  man  who  succeeds  me !" 

The  happy  meeting  with  his  parents  to  which 
Hippolyte  Flandrin  had  looked  so  continually  through 
his  years  of  study  at  Rome  was  not  to  take  place. 
His  father,  who  had  seemingly  been  in  bad  health  for 
some  time,  died  just  before  the  expiration  of  Flandrin's 
studentship.  He  writes  as  follows  : — 

"  ROME,  Jan.  26,  1838. 

"  My  dearest  Mama  and  poor  Auguste, — I  will 
not  attempt  to  dwell  on  our  grief,  you  know  it  all  by 
your  own.  We  have  lost  our  good,  loving  father ;  and 


CONSOLATIONS. 


you  have  both  been  all  you  ought  to  him  ;  you  could 
prove  your  love  for  him,  you  have  fulfilled  all  your  duties 
— but  we  !  After  an  exile  of  five  years,  just  as  we  were 
about  to  return,  our  one  thought  was  to  see  you  again, 
and  by  our  loving  care  to  make  up  for  time  lost ;  yes, 
it  was  really  lost,  inasmuch  as  we  have  not  been  able 
to  help  or  comfort  you — just  at  this  moment  our  dear 
father  is  gone  from  us.  We  could  not  embrace  him 
or  hold  his  hands,  and  you  have  been  suffering  and 
weeping  without  us.  It  is  very  hard  to  bear  !  But  I 
am  only  adding  to  your  grief  by  all  this  ! 

"  We  thank  Auguste  warmly  for  the  details  he  sends 
us.  They  are  an  alleviation  you  must  feel  strongly. 
He  is  gone,  loving  us  all,  upheld  by  the  religious  mind 
we  could  most  have  wished  for  him  ; — the  holy  mind, 
which  can  loosen  the  tenderest  bonds  without  break 
ing  them.  What  courage  that  must  have  given  him ! 
I  ought  to  comfort  you,  and  fain  would  do  so ;  and  it 
is  very  trying  to  us,  dearest  mama,  not  to  be  with  you 
and  able  to  do  so  as  far  lies  in  our  power.  But  I  trust 
to  our  brother,  that  dear  brother  who  has  done  so 
much  for  us  all,  and  for  whom  we  feel  such  boundless 
gratitude.  I  trust  to  your  religion,  the  true  source  of 
our  courage  and  all  your  goodness ;  and  I  trust  too 
to  your  love  for  us.  Mama,  you  do  wish  to  live  for 
your  three  children,  don't  you?  and  you  will  ask  God 
that  you  may  do  so,  just  as  we  ask  it  continually  ? 


SYMPATHY.  121 


Oh,  if  we  could  but  embrace  you  !  I  beseech  you  to 
be  brave  and  resigned  j  I  rely  on  it  because  of  your 
love  for  us.  Do  not  be  anxious  about  us  j  we  are 
surrounded  by  kind  friends.  .  .  .  Imperative  duties 
detain  us  here  for  a  while,  but  we  shall  lose  no  time  in 
coming  to  you.  Take  care  of  yourself  I  beseech  you. 
We  pray  for  our  dear  father,  and  for  you  and  for 
our  brother.  Do  you  pray  for  us  too.  Adieu,  dearest 
mother,  adieu,  dear  brother  and  friend." 

To  MM.  Ambroise  Thomas  and  Harle. 

"  ROME,  March  16,  1838. 

"  Dear  Friends, — I  write  hurriedly  to  you,  because, 
as  you  guessed,  I  am  working  at  my  picture,  and 
have  no  time  to  spare.  Your  letter  was  very  welcome, 
and  your  expressions  of  friendship  all  the  more  pre 
cious,  that  within  the  last  two  months  we  have  had  a 
heavy  sorrow.  We  have  lost  our  dear  father,  and  a  few 
days  after,  one  of  our  comrades,  Clerginet,  had  the 
same  loss.  I  had  finished  my  time,  I  was  going  to 
see  him.  .  .  .  O  dear  friends,  it  will  be  a  sad  return  ! 
So  you  see  I  have  had  to  work  at  my  unlucky  picture 
amid  sickness  and  sorrow.  God  knows  what  it  will 
turn  out !  Nobody  has  seen  it  yet,  not  even  M.  Ingres. 
As  for  me,  I  am  tired  out  to  the  last  degree,  and  am  no 
judge.  Adieu,  dear  old  fellows.  The  sympathy  of 
friends  is  a  true  balm,  and  I  know  we  have  yours." 


122  LEA  VES  ROME. 


"ROME,  March  30,  1838. 

"  Dear  Auguste, — I  answer  your  last  letter  in  haste. 
I  was  quite  sure  you  would  approve  our  choice. 
Assuredly  our  dear  mother  deserves  every  proof  of 
confidence  and  love.  Thanks  for  your  good  report  of 
her,  it  is  a  great  comfort  to  us.  Dear  fellow,  I  have 
had  much  the  same  thoughts  as  you  about  our  weakness. 
We  have  no  more  strength  to  bear  a  prolonged  sorrow 
than  a  very  great  joy,  or  a  protracted  season  of  rest. 
Already  we  sometimes  reproach  ourselves  for  begin 
ning  to  sing  again  at  our  work  ;  yet  I  don't  think  any 
one  could  love  a  good  father  more  devotedly.  His 
memory  is  always  present,  and  our  regret  is  very 
deep.  I  hope  it  will  soften,  and  that  we  shall  find 
comfort  in  recalling  his  words  and  doings  to  one 
another's  mind." 

To  M.  Ambroise  Thomas. 

"  NAPLES,  June  14,  1838. 

"I  am  writing  to  you  from  Santi  Combi's  on  the  Santa 
Lucia,  and  what  is  more,  from  your  own  old  room. 
Every  day  I  look  out  on  all  you  love  so  much, — the 
beautiful  gulf,  Vesuvius,  the  mountains  and  islands. 
I  have  all  these,  I  drink  them  in  and  admire  them ; 
and  yet  the  beloved  Rome  is  continually  rising  up 
before  me.  I  left  it  on  the  4th.  Poor  M.  Ingres  ! 
how  sorry  I  am  to  leave  him  for  two  years  and  a  half ! 


NAPLES.  123 


Our  comrades  were  very  kind,  they  went  as  far  as 
Porta  San  Giovanni  with  me ;  we  were  twenty-three 
in  all  there  when  we  separated.  Here  we  have  been 
already  over  and  over  again  to  the  Museum,  Pompeii, 
Herculaneum  and  Vesuvius,  which  is  very  placid  at 
the  present  moment,  but  fine  all  the  same.  At  the 
Hermitage  my  first  object  was  to  get  the  book  of  1833, 
and  to  find  your  name.  I  was  so  pleased  to  find  it 
I  could  not  resist  putting  mine  by  it.  I  am  here; 
with  Paul  and  my  eldest  brother,  who  joined  us  at  last, 
as  also  Boulanger  and  Roger,  capital  travelling  com 
panions.  We  are  starting  for  Paestum.  Then  we 
propose  going  by  sea  to  Leghorn,  and  taking  Pisa, 
Florence  and  Milan,  that  our  brother  may  see  them. 
Then  a  time  at  Lyons  with  my  dear  mother;  and 
early  in  September  we  hope  to  join  you,  and  see 
what  can  be  done." 

To  M.  Eugene  Roger,  Naples. 

"FLORENCE,  July  6,  1838. 

"  Here  we  are,  but  not  without  our  troubles  !  For 
the  first  seven  hours  after  leaving  you  our  voyage  was 
a  sort  of  enchantment.  The  sea  was  superb,  moun 
tains  and  islands  put  on  the  most  marvellous  effects 
of  form  and  colour,  the  sun  set  gloriously  behind  Cape 
Circe,  the  bright  moon  lit  up  the  sea.  All  was  calm  ; 
but  towards  ten  o'clock  the  wind  rose,  clouds  covered 


I24  SEA  SICKNESS. 


the  sky,  general  malaise  began  to  be  felt,  every  one 
grew  restless  and  began  to  try  to  find  bearable  posi 
tions — in  vain  !  On  all  sides  lamentations  and  grunts ! 
Then  came  rain,  which  forced  every  one  to  seek  shelter, 
stumbling  about  and  holding  on  as  they  could.  In 
side,  such  a  sight !  a  downright  battlefield.  There 
we  stayed,  like  the  rest,  stretched  pell  mell  on  the  floor 
like  so  many  sacks  of  corn.  The  waves  were  dashing 
noisily  over  the  deck,  and  washing  down  into  every  cor 
ner  of  the  vessel,  drenching  us  all ;  but  I  never  stirred 
a  finger  to  avoid  getting  wet,  nor  any  one  else  either  ! 
However,  after  three  or  four  hours,  by  some  super 
human  efforts,  we  did  contrive  to  slither  into  our 
berths,  and  there  we  stayed  till  ten  the  next  day,  when 
we  reached  Civita  Vecchia.  We  landed  and  met 
Famin  and  good  old  Gue'nepin,  who  had  come  to  meet 
us.  We  wanted  to  dine  with  them,  but,  all  in  much 
the  same  condition,  we  had  to  content  ourselves  with 
seeing  them  eat,  casting  dismal  glances  the  while  at 
the  sea  dashing  up  against  rocks  and  ramparts. 

"However,  we  re-embarked  bravely,  under  our 
friends'  auspices,  and  though  the  sea  was  very  rough 
we  had  not  strength  left  to  be  as  ill  as  the  night 
before.  We  stayed  huddled  up  in  our  holes  till  we 
reached  Leghorn,  where  we  left  Boulanger.  The  sea 
was  calmer,  so  I  hope  he  will  have  got  on  better. 
Pisa  delighted  us,  and  Florence  is  always  charming  to 


RESULTS  OF  STUDY.  125 

me.  In  spite  of  all  we  have  seen  at  Naples,  the  old 
Tuscan  masters  hold  their  own  to  my  mind.  I 
delight  more  than  ever  in  them  and  in  Raffaele." 

These  last  words,  written  as  Flandrin's  student 
life  in  Italy  closed,  are  noticed  by  his  friend  and  bio 
grapher,  Vicomte  Delaborde,  as  a  noteworthy  resume 
of  the  impressions  he  had  received,  and  a  programme 
of  his  future  work  and  the  earnest  aim  of  his  life. 
"  Do  we  not  find  the  continued  proof  of  this  prefer 
ence  for  the  old  Tuscan  masters  and  for  Raffaele" 
(M.  Delaborde  asks)  "  more  and  more  in  all  his 
works,  from  the  Chapel  of  Saint  Severin  to  the  nave 
of  Saint  Germain  des  Pres  ?  Not  that  his  respectful 
memories  for  his  great  models  took  shape  in  mere 
literal  imitation  or  technical  likeness.  Hippolyte 
Flandrin  knew  too  well  that,  like  ancient  art,  the 
Italian  Renaissance  is  not  a  language,  the  beauty  and 
genius  of  which  can  be  adopted  by  the  mere  outward 
copyist.  Rather  than  rest  content  to  imitate  the 
exterior  of  the  great  works  which  he  took  as  his 
permanent  models,  he  devoted  himself  to  studying 
their  spirit,  striving  to  revert  to  the  source  whence 
their  inspiration  flowed,  so  that  he  too  might  drink 
thereof.  So  that  while  the  Stanze  of  the  Vatican  are  to 
his  mind  the  most  absolute  expression  of  pictorial  per 
fection  ;  while,  as  he  repeatedly  would  affirm,  Giotto's 


126  INFLUENCE. 


frescoes  in  Santa  Maria  del  Arena,  or  those  of  Fra 
Angelico  in  the  Chapel  of  Nicholas  V.,  ought  to  be 
'the  very  breviary'  of  the  painter  of  religious  subjects, 
Flandrin  none  the  less  sought  daily  to  study  on  his 
own  account,  and  to  adapt  the  lessons  of  the  past 
to  the  requirements  of  his  personal  feeling  and  the 
wants  of  the  present  day." 

Three  years  spent  in  Rome  had  indeed  not  been 
wasted.  His  influence  among  his  fellow-students  had 
been  great — it  is  one  of  themselves1  who  speaks  of  it 
as  "  a  downright  fascination  to  all  who  came  near  him 
— the  fascination  of  a  superior  artist  and  a  good  man ; " 
and  the  two  things  were  wonderfully  blended. 

From  his  birth  he  had  possessed — and  they  never 
failed  him — the  passionate  instincts  of  an  artist,  a  keen 
ness  of  perception  of,  and  craving  for,  every  expression 
of  external  beauty,  realising  the  great  truths  of  all 
forms  of  beauty,  and  irresistibly  constrained,  so  to  say, 
to  give  it  shape  ;  but  he  was  also  a  Christian,  one  for 
whom  there  could  be  no  beauty  save  on  the  condition 
that  it  tells  of  God ;  one  who  in  the  region  of  the  ideal 
could  no  more  separate  his  admiration  from  his  belief 
than  he  could  separate  his  speculative  knowledge  from 
his  actions  in  daily  life.  The  most  perilous  days  of 
early  youth  were  steered  through  in  safety  by  the  help 
of  a  pious  childhood,  and  the  wholesome  examples  of 
1  Ambroise  Thomas. 


HIGH  ASPIRA  TIONS.  1 2 7 

a  pure  home;  and  he  was  kept  straight  amid  the 
temptations  of  artist  life  by  the  remembrance  of  the 
lessons  of  that  home,  and  a  voluntary  obedience  to 
the  duties  there  impressed  upon  him.  So  that,  as  one 
of  his  friends  says,  when  he  became  a  man,  Flandrin 
"  only  needed  to  be  himself  to  be  a  Christian,  just  as  to 
be  an  artist  he  only  needed  to  follow  his  natural 
tastes  and  exercise  his  faculties."  It  was  this  perfect 
harmony  between  his  characteristic  talent  and  his 
habits  of  life,  this  entire  conformity  of  the  painter's 
inspirations  with  the  principles  and  practice  of  the 
man,  which  have  won  Flandrin  a  claim  to  an  alto 
gether  exceptional  respect,  and  an  unquestionable 
authority.  Where  so  many  other  painters  of  sacred 
subjects  under  David,  or  earlier  still,  had  but  played  a 
part  skilfully,  Flandrin  devoted  himself  wholly  to  his 
art,  because  his  work  was  as  much  the  creation  of  his 
heart  as  of  his  mind.  His  piety  in  nowise  dulled 
him  to  the  delights  of  real  beauty,  any  more  than  his 
zealous  prosecution  of  art  distracted  him  from  meta 
physical  contemplation ;  and  when  in  his  early  days  at 
Rome,  Flandrin  wrote  to  his  brother  to  send  him  some 
brushes  and  the  Pensees  de  Pascal,  he  was  uncon 
sciously  gathering  up  all  the  occupations,  longings  and 
passions  of  his  life — a  life  divided  between  the  need 
to  paint  sacred  things  and  the  no  less  imperative 
need  to  meditate  upon  and  penetrate  into  their 


128  MORAL  SINCERITY. 

mysteries.  Later  on,  when  decorating  the  Church  of 
Saint  Paul  at  Nimes,  he  inscribed  the  names  of  father 
and  mother,  sister  and  brother's  wife  and  children,  of 
all  whom  he  had  loved  or  lost,  within  a  fold  of  the 
drapery  of  his  figure  of  Christ  at  the  top  of  the  choir. 
It  was  not  done  as  a  token  of  his  faith,  or  a  profession 
of  affection ;  the  inscriptions  are  totally  invisible,  and 
moreover  Flandrin  only  told  one  person  what  he  had 
done,  bidding  him  keep  the  secret.  It  was  an  ex  voto 
intended  for  no  eye  save  that  of  God,  and  it  was  as  a 
prayer  that  his  hand  traced  the  words. 

Probably  the  secret  of  Flandrin's  influence  as  a 
man  and  as  a  painter  may  be  traced  to  the  same 
cause,  what  M.  Delaborde  calls  his  "  thorough  moral 
sincerity." 

"  Men  believe  in  the  artist's  authority  and  his  elo 
quence,  because  he  himself  believed  in  the  things  of 
which  his  pencil  tells ;  they  are  touched  with  his 
emotion,  infected  as  by  a  happy  contagion  with  the 
Christian  tenderness  which  breathes  in  all  his  works, 
because  he  felt  it  himself  in  every  task,  not  by  a  mere 
effort  of  will  or  accidental  act  of  intelligence,  but 
through  the  wonted  springs  and  innate  cravings  of  his 
heart.  Flandrin's  thoughts  followed  readily  and 
naturally  into  those  ideal  regions,  those  supernatural 
spheres  where  formerly  Fra  Angelico's  spirit  drank 
its  inspirations ;  and  when  he  covered  the  walls  of 


TRADITION  AND  REALISM.  129 

churches  with  types  of  earthly  renunciation  or  told 
the  tale  of  heavenly  mercy,  when  he  depicted  the 
beauty  of  self-abandonment  to  God,  resignation  and 
love  in  such  unearthly  purity,  he  seemed  less  to  be 
fulfilling  a  task  than  obeying  the  laws  of  a  natural 
vocation ;  rather  to  be  embodying  his  familiar  thoughts 
and  memories  than  carrying  out  any  formal  plan." 

"  It  was  a  new  undertaking,"  M.  Delaborde  says  else 
where,  "to  combine  the  severity  of  religious  thought 
with  cairn  grace  and  peaceful  ease  of  expression ;  just 
as  it  was  in  a  fashion  audacious — in  practice  anyhow 
most  skilful — to  unite  the  time-honoured  traditions  of 
beauty  with  conformity  to  what  nature  sets  before  our 
eyes ;  to  embody  on  canvas  the  likeness  of  life's 
visible  truths,  together  with  the  results  of  a  training 
acquired  in  picture-galleries."  This  undertaking 
Flandrin  achieved  in  his  Dante,  his  Saint  Clair,  his 
picture  of  our  Lord  blessing  the  children ;  and  while 
not  forgetting  the  debt  owed  to  other  modern  artists, 
among  whom  Orsel  is  chief — his  aim  being,  as  he  said 
himself,  "to  baptize  Greek  art" — Flandrin  carried  out 
the  principle  and  combined  the  higher  tone  of  Chris 
tian  realism  with  the  recognised  traditions  of  ancient 
art,  believing  heartily  in  both,  and  that  more  and  more 
to  the  end  of  his  life. 

The  episode  of  Roman  life  was  finished ;  and  return 
ing  to  his  native  Lyons,  Flandrin  writes  pathetically : 


130  FAREWELL  TO  ROME. 

"  I  have  done  with  my  student  life,  and  I  must  con 
fess,  that,  in  spite  of  the  return  to  home  and  friends,  it 
is  with  regret,  a  most  keen  regret,  that  I  part  from  this 
period  of  my  life.  I  might  have  been  more  fortunate 
perhaps,  for  eighteen  months  of  fever  do  not  tend  to 
make  one  see  things  en  beau ;  but  I  found  so  much 
not  to  be  found  elsewhere,  so  much  to  be  deprived 
of,  which  seems  intolerable  as  I  look  forward !  It 
costs  me  more  than  I  can  say  to  part  from  it  all; 
and,  of  course,  just  now  the  loss  is  felt  at  every  turn, 
and  the  compensations  are  scarcely  appreciable  :  per 
haps  later  on  I  shall  be  more  open  to  them."  Probably 
most  people  who  have  spent  any  time,  above  all  in 
study,  at  Rome,  have  more  or  less  such  cravings  to 
return  to  its  marvellous  fascinations ;  certainly  from 
the  day  of  his  departure  in  1838  to  the  time  he 
returned  there — as  it  proved,  to  die — Flandrin  longed 
after  his  beloved  Rome ;  and  in  his  letters,  telling  of 
worries,  social  conventionalities,  and  the  like,  from 
time  to  time  a  pathetic  "O  !  for  Rome  once  more!" 
creeps  in. 

But  he  was  not  a  man  to  sit  down  and  lose  time 
over  vain  regrets  or  sentimentalities.  The  promised 
visit  to  his  mother  was  paid  on  his  way  to  Paris,  where 
work,  hard,  resolute  work,  was  Flandrin's  deliberate 
aim  and  intention.  He  writes  to  his  friend  Ambroise 
Thomas  : — 


RETURN  TO  PARIS.  131 

"LYONS,  Aug.  9,  1838. 

"...  We  gladly  accept  your  proposal  that  we 
should  come  to  you  for  the  first  few  days.  How 
pleasant  it  will  be  to  talk  !  though  indeed,  as  you  say, 
we  shall  hardly  know  where  to  begin.  But  somehow 
I  think  we  shall  soon  find  ourselves  in  Rome  !  It  is 
an  endless  subject,  and  one  which  I  rejoice  to  associate 
so  much  with  you.  Coming  back,  after  Florence,  there 
are  the  Apennines,  Bologna,  and  some  other  fine  things; 
but  how  shall  we  find  elsewhere  the  picturesque 
character  of  that  wonderful  land  ?  Where  else  that 
rich,  lovely  vegetation,  those  woods  of  laurel  and  ilex, 
those  magnificent  pines,  olives,  orange  and  lemon 
trees,  pomegranates,  aloes  ?  They  are  all  replaced  by 
willows  and  plane  trees ;  the  land  is  a  marshy  rice- 
field  ;  everything  is  by  rule  and  line  !  What  a  change  ! 
Nevertheless,  after  all  this  fastidious  preparation,  I  could 
not  cross  the  last  Italian  boundary  with  indifference. 
Among  the  glaciers  at  the  top  of  the  Simplon  we  said 
a  loving  and  grateful  farewell  to  Italy; — and  indeed  we 
have  a  large  debt  of  happiness  owing  to  her  !" 

The  days  of  pedestrian  journeys  were  over, — time 
was  a  more  precious  thing  now  to  the  artist  brothers, 
and  a  diligence  journey,  much  hindered  by  rains, 
brought  them  to  Paris  in  the  first  days  of  September 
1838.  The  first  impression  on  his  return  was  such 


132  THE  DINGY  NORTH! 

as  probably  most  of  us  have  felt  on  re-entering  a 
Northern  town  after  sojourning  in  the  South  and  amid 
the  glowing  tints  of  Italy.  "  There  was  the  familiar 
Paris  again,  but  with  more  noise,  mud,  smoke,  and 
crowd  than  ever  !  For  a  moment  it  appalled  me ;  it 
never  had  seemed  so  immense." 

A  weary  time  ensued,  seeking  an  atelier.  "  Inter 
minable  running  about  in  horrible  weather  after  a 
studio.  But  at  last  we  have  ended  in  getting  one  in 
the  Rue  de  Lille.  It  is  fairly  good,  but  very  dear, 
although  cheaper  than  the  rest.  Seven  hundred  francs  ! 
and  then,  besides  that,  we  have  to  think  about  our 
own  quarters,  for  we  are  still  with  Thomas." 

After  installing  himself  in  this  studio,  Flandrin  and 
his  brother  Paul  returned  to  Lyons  for  a  month, 
finally  settling  in  Paris  in  November,  whence  he  writes 
to  his  mother  : — 

"Nov.  30,  1838. — Monday  was  a  dismal  day; 
we  were  leaving  you  for  a  long  time,  and  the  rain, 
which  lasted  nearly  all  day,  would  not  allow  us  to  go 
on  deck,  and  we  had  to  stay  below  till  we  reached 
Chalons,  at  half-past  nine  in  the  evening.  There  we 
took  the  diligence,  which  was  full,  and  in  the  coupe 
between  us  we  had  an  Englishman,  who  proved  very 
agreeable.  At  ten  o'clock,  final  start ;  but  our  pace 
was  that  of  the  tortoise,  and  the  climax  was,  that  at 
Avallon,  on  Tuesday  evening,  there  were  no  horses  to 


SALE  OF  A  PICTURE.  133 

be  had  at  the  messagerie.  So  we  waited  five  hours  in 
the  middle  of  the  street,  until  at  last,  in  despair,  when 
it  was  past  midnight,  we  decided  to  go  and  knock  up 
the  mayor,  the  head  of  the  police,  the  juge  de  paix, 
and  all  the  authorities  of  the  place  !  Their  united 
efforts  at  last  took  effect  with  the  postmaster,  who 
would  not  give  us  horses  because  the  officials  had  not 
applied  to  him  first  of  all.  At  last  we  got  off, — rain, 
fog,  everything  horrible — to  Paris,  where,  instead  of 
arriving,  as  promised,  on  Wednesday  evening,  we  did 
not  find  ourselves  till  seven  o'clock  on  Thursday 
morning.  We  were  tired,  but  would  not  go  to  bed. 
We  went  to  the  Muse'e  (Louvre),  and  thence  to  our 
studio,  where  we  found  everything  in  order." 

Hippolyte  Flandrin's  picture  of  our  Lord  with  the 
little  ones  was  in  the  Louvre,  and,  as  we  have  seen,  he 
was  anxious  to  sell  it ;  but  his  artist's  pride  had  some 
severe  struggles  to  endure.  Soon  after  his  return  to 
Paris  he  writes  to  his  brother  Auguste  : — 

"PARIS,  Dec.  3,  1838. 

"  I  want  you  to  do  me  a  service,  into  which  I  know 
you  will  throw  yourself  zealously.  This  is  it.  Yester 
day  I  was  going  to  the  Ministere  de  ITnterieur  to  see 
M.  Dumont,1  to  whom  I  attribute  the  success  of  my 
picture  with  the  Minister,  when  it  came  into  my  head 
to  go  first  to  M.  Gatteaux,  who  said,  '  Well,  I  have  seen 
Chef  du  Bureau  cles  Beaux  Arts. 


1 34  MOR  T1FICA  TION. 


Dumont;  he  told  me  that  your  picture  is  sold,  and  that 
they  will  give  you  three  thousand  francs ! '  So  far 
from  being  overcome  by  this  generosity,  I  made  a 
grimace  which  I  had  to  hide  as  best  I  could ;  and  I 
asked  M.  Gatteaux  what  was  to  be  done  with  my 
picture.  He  said  nothing  was  known,  but  they 
thought  of  sending  it  to  some  country  museum.  I 
thanked  him  for  the  information  and  retired,  post 
poning  my  visit  to  M.  Dumont  out  of  prudence.  I 
was  prepared  for  something  of  this  sort,  but  one  is 
always  taken  by  surprise  when  a  thing  actually  happens. 
If  I  did  not  expect  a  very  magnificent  price,  at  least 
I  reckoned  on  a  more  honourable  position.  But  you 
see  it  is  a  great  favour ; — they  don't  suppose  I  could 
possibly  refuse  such  a  thing  !  They  don't  know  what 
to  do  with  it,  but  nevertheless  they  buy  it  and  rid 
one  of  it !  Oh,  how  I  should  like  to  say  '  It  is  sold  at 
a  higher  price  ! '  So  please  see  Petrus,  and  ascertain 
what  chance  there  is  of  his  plan  for  getting  the  picture 
bought  for  Saint  Louis  being  carried  out.  Neverthe 
less,  one  must  act  prudently;  for  I  must  confess  my 
object  would  be  to  show  that  I  have  other  resources, 
and  I  must  further  confess  that  I  would  rather  sell  it 
for  less  here  if  I  had  been  given  a  place  in  a  Paris 
church  or  gallery.  I  think,  dear  old  fellow,  that  you 
will  understand.  See  to  it,  but  keep  my  letter  and  its 
drops  of  vinegar  to  yourself ! " 


< '  LES  GROS  BONNETS. "  135 

"  PARIS,  Dec.  7,  1838. 

"  Thanks,  dear  Auguste,  for  what  you  have  done.  I 
shall  not,  however,  go  to  M.  Roland ;  it  is  impossible 
for  me  to  make  such  a  proposition  myself.  Moreover, 
M.  Gatteaux  says  that  these  gentlemen  at  the  Ministere 
would  be  charmed  at  my  refusal,  and  that  it  would  be 
tantamount  to  scratching  my  own  name  off  the  list  for 
future  work.  So  you  see  I  must  end  by  doing  as  they 
would  have  me,  which  is  rather  hard,  for  at  that  rate, 
considering  Paris  expenses,  it  would  be  impossible  for 
me  to  do  another  work  on  the  same  scale.  They 
grind  painting  down  to  the  mere  trade  level  by  de 
priving  one  of  the  possibilities  of  progress.  You  see 
I  was  not  far  wrong  in  my  judgment  beforehand  of  the 
world  we  have  to  do  with.  As  for  you,  work  away,  and 
make  the  most  of  what  you  have  got  down  there.  Paris 
is  not  so  beautiful  after  all  when  you  are  in  it !  But  your 
picture  !  your  picture  ! " 

"PARIS,  Jan.  6,  1839. 

"  Thanks,  my  dear  Auguste,  for  the  advice  you  give 
me  in  the  kindness  of  your  heart ; — but,  but — oh, 
what  a  lot  of  buts  !  As  to  going  to  see  the  'gros 
bonnets]  I  assure  you  that  is  quite  too  great  a  hardship. 
Since  I  came  here  I  have  tried  to  do  it,  and  if  it  were 
to  go  on  I  could  not  stand  up  against  it  at  all.  Oh, 
for  my  dear  Rome  !  But  here  to  be  treated  with  so 
little  consideration,  and  to  be  obliged  as  a  matter  of 


136  PATRONAGE. 


calculation  to  thank  people  for  the  miserable  offers 
they  make  one — if  indeed  they  do  as  much  as  that, 
for  they  think  themselves  conferring  such  a  favour  that 
they  dispose  of  one's  work  without  so  much  as  con 
descending  to  say  they  have  bought  it !  You  didn't 
know  that  they  were  going  to  send  my  picture  to 
Fecamp,  a  thing  which  M.  Dumont  happily  put  a 
stop  to.  ...  I  went  to  see  the  Prefet  a  fortnight  ago  ; 
but  between  ourselves  be  it  said,  I  determined  not 
to  go  there  again  in  a  hurry,  not  being  accustomed 
to  be  received  in  such  a  way,  that  is  to  say,  so 
drily,  with  the  most  marked  coldness,  leaving  me  to 
say  what  I  would,  without  a  word  as  to  what  he  had 
seen  or  had  not  seen.  •  In  spite  of  this  I  invited  him 
as  well  as  I  could  to  come  and  see  my  picture  and 
Paul's.  He  could  not  promise, — said  that  he  would 
try,  etc.  etc.,  and  here  is  a  fortnight  gone  by  and  no 
Prefet.  I  have  seen  a  great  many  people  who  might 
have  been  useful  to  me,  but  most  of  them  think  it 
enough  if  they  are  civil.  There  was  no  one  but  good 
M.  Foyatier,1  who  was  excited  at  the  idea  of  my  pic 
ture  going  for  three  thousand  francs.  He  talked, 
brought  people  to  see  it,  did  everything  in  his  power, 
but  .  .  .  Well !  patience.  Only  work  is  out  of  the  ques 
tion  with  this  perpetual  running  about,  and  one  is 

i  The    sculptor  whose    example  and  pleadings  had  first  led 
Flandrin's  parents  to  consent  to  his  studying  art. 


WORK.  137 


decidedly  worth  more  than  the  other,  for  some  people, 
— and  it  seems  that  I  am  one  of  them, — never  can 
make  much  of  that  trade  ! 

"  One  thing  in  your  letter  displeases  me  very  much  : 
I  mean  the  discouraged  tone  in  which  you  speak  of 
your  picture.1  It  vexes  me  exceedingly,  for  I  was  so 
full  of  hope.  It  is  so  well  begun,  that  one  might 
almost  consider  it  done.  Now  then,  once  for  all,  do 
what  you  can,  and  I  shall  be  satisfied.  .  .  .  Pray, 
dear  old  fellow,  work  away,  and  I  will  answer  for  your 
success.  Paul's  picture  improves  daily,  and  what  I 
have  done  to  mine  has  had  a  good  result  too.  Take 
good  care  of  our  dear  mother.  Oh,  if  we  could  but 
have  her  here,  how  happy  we  should  be,  for,  to  tell 
the  truth,  we  are  not  over-cheerful  in  this  Paris,  with 
all  its  absurd  grandeur,  where  one  doesn't  come  at 
one's  friends  as  one  would  like.  Thomas  himself  we 
see  but  rarely;  between  Desgoffe  and  us  there  lies 
about  a  lieue  and  a  half,  and  inasmuch  as  directly  rain 
or  fog  come  Paris  turns  into  a  pond,  more  or  less 
deep,  we  cannot  pay  one  another  many  visits.  .  .  . 
Don't  go  and  fancy,  after  all,  that  I  am  out  of  heart. 
When  I  have  thoroughly  set  to  work,  when  I  have  begun 
another  picture,  it  will  be  all  right.  The  thing  which 
really  weighs  me  down  is  the  rent  I  have  on  my  hands." 

1  This  was  a  picture  of  Savonarola  preaching  in  San  Miniato, 
which  he  exhibited  in  Paris  in  1840,  and  which  is  now  in  the 
Musee  at  Lyons. 


138  INTERRUPTIONS. 

"PARIS,  Feb.  13,  1839. 

"  Sometimes  I  forget  myself,  and  date  my  letters 
from  Rome,  though,  certainly,  there  are  plenty  of 
things  to  remind  me  that  I  am  no  longer  there  !  The 
Salon  (Exhibition)  draws  near.  To-morrow  we  send 
in  our  pictures.  God  grant  that  Paul's  pictures  may 
be  well  placed,  for  I  think  if  they  are  seen  they  will 
be  successful.  We  are  working  hard,  but  with  constant 
interruptions  ;  for  we  have  a  constant  stream  of  visitors 
— sometimes  as  many  as  twenty  or  thirty  persons. 
Just  conceive,  with  short,  dark  days,  and  all  the  visits 
we  are  obliged  to  pay,  how  much  time  is  lost !  We 
have  not  been  able  to  stay  at  home  one  evening  since 
we  got  here.  All  this  is  a  matter  of  constraint  and 
necessity,  and  without  exaggeration  we  have  only  once 
been  able  to  get  an  hour's  walk — whenever  we  go  out 
it  is  sure  to  be  on  unavoidable  business.  I  don't 
know  whether  I  shall  get  accustomed  to  this  kind  of 
life,  but  just  at  present  it  wearies  me  horribly.  O 
Rome !  Rome ! 

"  As  for  you,  it  seems  to  me  that  you  are  working 
very  hard.  So  much  the  better,  but  you  don't  tell  me 
about  other  things.  Are  you  thinking  of  marrying  ? 
It  would  be  reasonable.  And  have  you  done  as  I 
advised  you,  and  seen  a  little  more  of  the  world  this 
winter?  If  you  hide  yourself,  my  dear  fellow,  you 
will  not  be  found  out I  must  tell  you,  just  for 


THE  SALON.  139 


yourself  and  mama,  that  there  is  an  idea  of  giving 
me  a  chapel  in  Saint  Severin — very  bad  pay  as  I  hear, 
but  it  is  an  opening  for  doing  something  really  good, 
and  just  now  that  is  what  I  must  think  most  about. 
I  am  working  at  compositions  for  it,  and  in  a  month's 
time  I  fancy  it  will  be  decided.  Till  then  don't  let 
us  be  too  confident,  but  it  would  be  delightful." 

To  M.  Eugene  Roger,  at  the  Academy  of  France  at 
Rome. 

"PARIS,  March  u,  1839. 

"  ....  As  to  the  Salon,  March  2,  at  eleven 
o'clock,  we  got  in  with  the  stream  of  the  crowd.  The 
opening  had  been  delayed  a  day  in  consequence  of 
the  quantity  of  works  sent  in.  It  was  splendid 
weather,  and  the  great  salon  was  dazzling.  First  of  all 
we  saw  M.  Vernet  occupying  the  whole  of  one  side  with 
three  pictures  of  the  Prise  de  Constantine.  At  the  first 
glance  I  was  taken  by  a  certain  life  about  them,  and 
by  the  clear,  simple  way  in  which  the  action  is  given, 
but  go  into  details,  and  they  lose  considerably.  Then 
come  Decamp's  pictures,  *vhich  strike  me  as  better 
than  anything  of  his  I  have  seen  before.  I  can 
hardly  describe  them,  as  there  are  eleven,  and  it 
would  be  too  long  a  story.  On  the  other  side  of  the 
great  salon,  rather  too  high  unfortunately,  comes 
Paul's  great  landscape,  which  is  greatly  improved, 


140  GRIEFS  OF  AN  ARTIST. 

and  which,  to  my  mind,  is  the  most  classical  in  the 
whole  Exhibition,  although  Aligny,  Edouard  Bertin, 
Marilhat,  Corot,  etc.,  have  pictures  in  it.  There  is  also 
a  Saint  Luke  painting  the  Blessed  Virgin  in  the  great 
saloon  by  Ziegler,  which  does  not  please  me  im 
mensely,  but  in  which  one  is  forced  to  recognise 
power  and  repose,  which  separate  it  in  a  measure  from 
the  otherwise  universal  confusion  and  chaos. 

"  Except  the  pictures  I  have  mentioned,  the  grand 
salon  is  full  of  the  worst  things  in  the  Exhibition. 
Apparently  out  of  consideration  for  my  unlucky 
cartoon,  they  wouldn't  put  it  in  such  company ;  it  is 
in  the  gallery  where  the  Davids  are.  That  might  have 
been  all  very  well  if  it  had  been  at  a  reasonable 
height,  but  they  have  perched  it  right  up  atop,  with  a 
window  above  it,  so  that  the  daylight  makes  a  sort 
of  frame  to  it,  and  a  window  opposite,  like  a  mirror. 
Indeed,  I  wish  it  were  still  less  seen,  and  then  people 
would  not  try  to  form  any  opinion  of  it  up  there  ! 

"Then,  by  way  of  portraits,  we  have  all  the 
Royal  Family,  by  Winterhalter,  but  they  are  not  very 
remarkable.  There  is  a  picture  by  one  Leullier,  of 
the  Christians  thrown  to  wild  beasts  in  the  Coliseum. 
Perhaps  the  subject  is  not  particularly  well  chosen, 
but  the  animals  are  drawn  admirably,  and  their  action 
wonderful ;  it  is  full  of  energy.  Desgoffe  has  several 
good  pictures,  but,  like  Paul's  four  others,  they  are 


ARY  SCHEFFER.  141 

villanously  hung.  Signol  has  a  picture  for  Versailles, 
Saint  Bernard  preaching  the  Crusades  j  and  Bezard 
too  has  a  picture,  which  is  a  good  composition  and 
well  conceived,  but  the  details  are  entirely  study,  and 
I  think  there  are  certain  points  which  can  only  be 
attained  in  the  actual  presence  of  nature. 

"At  the  end  of  the  great  gallery  Scheffer  exhibits 
five  pictures,  which  touch  one  another,  and  make  a 
sort  of  background  to  each  other  in  a  very  clever  way. 
To  my  mind  they  are  full  of  delicate  feeling,  but  at 
the  same  time  a  little  bit  pkureur.  The  colouring 
wants  power;  it  is  simple,  but  rather  flat  and  smooth. 
Nevertheless,  M.  Scheffer  is  supreme  in  the  salon,  as 
may  be  supposed.  As  for  the  rest,  ma  foil  I  have 
nothing  to  say  about  them,  except  that  I  don't  know 
what  they  are  at !  ... 

"  I  must  tell  you  that,  amid  all  the  misfortunes  of 
my  picture,  it  has  got  a  happier  prospect  in  store. 
They  have  promised  me  that,  after  the  Exhibition,  it 
shall  go  for  a  time  to  the  Luxembourg,  and  after  that 
to  Lyons.  Just  now  there  is  a  question  of  my  painting 
a  chapel  in  Saint  Severin.  If  that  might  come  to  pass 
I  should  be  very  happy,  although  I  am  told  before 
hand  that  it  will  not  pay,  and  that  it  will  have  to 
be  well  and  quickly  done.  I  have  often  thought, 
my  dear  Roger,  of  taking  a  studio  (of  pupils),  as  you 
used  to  advise  at  Naples.  Some  fifteen  young  men 


142  PROPOSED  STUDIO. 

have  already  applied  to  me,  but,  not  knowing  M. 
Ingres'  mind  on  the  subject,  I  refused  them.  Some 
however  persist,  and  I  have  determined  to  write  to  M. 
Ingres  about  it.  As  I  wrote  to  him  a  few  days  ago, 
I  enclose  a  note  for  him  to  you.  If  you  talk  it  over 
together,  and  he  does  not  answer  at  once,  I  wish  you 
would  do  so  yourself.  You  know  all  I  think  about  the 
matter,  and  the  reasons  which  have  made  me  refuse 
hitherto.  So,  if  M.  Ingres  should  talk  to  you  about  it, 
tell  him  everything,  for  above  all  things  I  would  not 
have  him  think  one  presumptuous  and  self-assuming." 

M.  Ingres  heartily  urged  Flandrin  to  open  a  studio 
for  pupils,  and  in  the  month  of  April  1839  he  wrote 
to  his  brother  Auguste  that  he  was  preparing  to  do  so, 
and  looked  forward  with  pleasure  to  extending  his 
master's  school ;  but  he  never  carried  out  the  intention, 
and  six  months  later  he  says  in  a  letter  to  Auguste 
that  Madame  George  Sand  was  anxious  he  should 
take  her  son  as  a  private  pupil,  but  that  he  had  refused, 
for  want  of  proper  accommodation. 

The  picture  Flandrin  exhibited  at  this  Exhibition,  of 
our  Lord  blessing  little  children,  met  with  very  great 
admiration  among  his  brethren  of  the  art.  Among  these 
Ary  Scheffer  was  prominent.  He  had  been  one  of  the 
first  to  visit  the  picture  while  yet  in  the  painter's  studio, 
and,  regardless  of  his  great  name  and  undoubted  sue- 


SCHEFFER  AND  DELAROCHE.  143 

cesses,  he  exclaimed,  "  Why  is  it  not  given  to  me  to 
follow  confidently  as  you  do  in  this  track  !   Why  did  I 
not  acquire  a  teaching  such  as  you  have  had,  but  which 
it  is  too  late  for  me  to  seek  !     You  can  express  what 
you  feel  as  you  will ;  you  know,  and  I  do  not  know.  My 
pictures  only  let  intentions  peep  out  without  affirming 
anything,  and  your  pictures  prove  it  to  me  by  force  of 
contrast."     Nor  were  these  mere  words,  for  Scheffer 
studied  Flandrin's  works  carefully,  often  took  counsel 
with  him,  and  to  the  end  treated  him  with  a  deference 
which  caused  much  more  perplexity  than  pride  to  the 
younger  artist.     Paul  Delaroche  was  equally  liberal 
in  sympathy  and  applause,  and  M.  Gatteaux  exerted 
himself  to  obtain  scope  for  the  exercise  of  the  talents 
he  appreciated.    It  was  through  him  that  Flandrin  was 
commissioned  first  to  paint  the  Chapel  of  St.  John  in 
Saint  Severin,  and  later,  the  Choir  of  Saint  Germain 
des  Pres.    Conscious  of  the  truth  of  his  art  principles, 
and  standing  emphatically  by  them  throughout,  there 
was  no  particle  of  self-assumption  or  vanity  in  Flan 
drin's  mind.    Whatever  success  he  obtained  he  always 
attributed  to  the  teaching  of  his  beloved  master,  to 
whom,  up  to  the  last  days  of  his  life,  he  showed  the 
same   deference   expressed   in   the   first  year  of  his 
studentship,  the  same  gratitude  "  for  one  I  can  never 
admire   or  love   sufficiently."      And   this   exceeding 
modesty  and  freedom  from  self-assumption  or  conceit 


144  HUMILITY. 


drew  men  to  Flandrin  in  a  wondrous  way.  "  Com 
pletely  without  self-confidence  as  he  was,  timid  and 
shrinking  to  the  last  degree  when  encountering  praise 
or  having  to  go  through  some  worldly  ceremonial"  (so 
writes  a  friend),  "  how  well  he  understood  reassuring 
and  convincing  any  one  who  stood  in  need  of  counsel, 
encouragement,  or  sympathy  !"  In  all  dealings  with 
other  men,  Flandrin  set  himself  entirely  aside,  even 
among  those  who  were  unquestionably  his  inferiors  : 
whether  in  public  or  private  he  always  avoided  every 
thing  tending  to  bring  himself  forward,  and  seemed  to 
dread  being  made  prominent  as  much  as  most  men 
dread  being  overlooked.  Not  that  he  did  not  desire 
to  win  the  prizes  of  his  art,  but  it  was  without  self- 
consciousness  or  vanity — for  the  art's  sake,  not  for  his 
own ;  and  to  see  Paul  successful  was  a  greater  happi 
ness  than  to  be  successful  himself.  Yet  he  was  not 
other  than  alive  to  what  he  considered  justice. 

After  the  Exhibition  of  1839  he  writes  to  his  mother 
and  Auguste :  "  Paul  has  had  great  success ;  to  my 
mind  his  landscape  is  the  best  in  the  Exhibition,  and 
fortunately  I  am  not  singular  in  my  opinion.  .  .  .  The 
prizes  have  been  awarded.  The  croix  (Fhonneur  to 
MM.  X.,  a  mitraille  of  medals  to  MM.  So-and-so.  M. 
Paul  Flandrin,  whose  picture  has  been  deservedly 
noticed  and  admired,  has  permission  to  take  it  home 
again,  a  favour  he  will  know  how  to  justify  by  renewed 


ARRIVE  QUE  POURRA  !  145 

efforts.  M.  Hippolyte  Flandrin's  picture  has  been 
bought,  as  you  know,  by  the  Ministere  de  1'Interieur. 
It  was  destined  for  the  Luxembourg  Gallery,  then  for 
that  of  Lyons ;  but  in  consideration  of  the  legitimate 
success  it  has  obtained  its  destination  is  changed,  and 
it  is  to  be  sent  to  Lisieux,  a  town  of  eight  or  ten  thou 
sand  inhabitants,  with  a  Musee  already  containing  two 
pictures  and  three  casts,  and  where  the  Municipal 
Council  may  be  inclined  to  vote  a  grant  for  the  con 
struction  of  a  hall  fit  to  contain  these  objects  of  art. 
Voila  !  But  all  the  same,  one  must  be  resigned,  and 
reckon  one's-self  fortunate,  and  seek  in  one's  own  con 
science  a  reward  which  I  know  is  worth  more  than 
that  of  the  world.  Anyhow,  that  is  what  one  ought  to 
do,  but  it  is  difficult.  Sometimes  one  lets  off  a  strain 
of  uncontrollable  indignation.  Adieu,  dear  old  fellow ; 
let  us  always  do  our  best,  and  then — arrive  que 
pourra  !" 

And  again  : — 

"  PARIS,  May  17,  1839. 

"  Now  the  Exhibition  is  over,  and  between  ourselves 
I  may  tell  you  that  your  two  brothers  were  of  the  best, 
but  there  was  not  the  smallest  offer  from  the  Ministry 
or  the  King's  household.  Nevertheless,  they  buy  the 
most  rubbishy  works,  and  shower  prizes,  croix  d'hon- 
neur  and  the  like,  upon  them.  That's  what  comes  of 
being  well  backed,  which  is  very  far  from  being  our 


146  GENERAL  DE  LAMOTHE. 

case.  We  know  a  great  many  people,  but  no  one 
speaks  on  our  behalf,  and  as  to  asking  for  myself  it  is 
a  thing  I  could  not  do.  But  remember,  please,  this 
grumbling  is  only  between  ourselves.  I  always  do  and 
always  shall  tell  you  whatever  I  think,  and  perhaps 
there  may  be  some  hope  yet.  I  should  specially  have 
liked  to  see  poor  Paul's  picture  sold.  If  you  had  seen 
it  among  all  the  rest,  there  really  was  no  comparison. 
All  artists  did  him  justice,  but  the  administration  is 
not  connaisseuse" 

Among  the  friends  who  appeared  in  Paris  now,  the 
brothers  were  pleased  to  see  General  Paultre  de  La- 
mothe  again, — the  same  good  soldier  who  was  com 
manding  at  Lyons  in  the  days  of  their  boyhood,  and 
who  used  to  take  so  much  interest  in  the  military 
sketches  of  the  "  petits  Flandrin,"  now,  as  he  pro 
phesied,  become  "  real  artists."  After  one  of  his  never- 
forgotten  affectionate  visits  to  his  mother,  Flandrin 
returned  in  July  1839  to  Paris.  "  The  rheumatism,"  he 
announces,  "  took  its  departure  on  the  way,  and  I  must 
tell  you  that  I  behaved  very  well,  for  though  I  had  left 
all  I  love  I  was  not  too  sad.  I  should  like  to  know  if 
little  mother  has  been  as  good,  and  whether  I  have  to 
scold  or  to  thank  her !  Meanwhile  I  embrace  her 
with  all  my  heart.  I  found  a  heap  of  letters  here — 
some  asking  me  to  dinner,  some  to  dance !  and  one 


RUE  DE  I:ABBA  YE.  147 

telling  you,  Paul,  that  your  picture  is  come  back  from 

Orleans,  that  is  to  say,  unsold  as  before I  saw 

my  chapel  this  morning Work  hard,  Paul, 

and  don't  you,  Auguste,  lose  any  of  your  zeal.  Dear 
mama,  you  will  pray  for  all  three  ! " 

Paul  remained  a  little  longer  with  their  mother,  and 
while  at  Lyons,  he  received  dismal  news  of  his  pictures 
from  Hippolyte. 

"  .  .  .  .  My  dear  Paul, — I  must  tell  you  what  is 
not  pleasant  j  but  after  all  we  are  men,  and  so  hard 
enough  (coriaces)  to  bear  worse  than  this.  I  told  you 
that  your  picture  had  come  back  from  Orleans,  the 
one  sent  to  Nantes  is  also  returned,  and  finally  the 
big  one  is  not  more  fortunate.  .  .  .  Ci  viiole  pazienza  ! 
....  Dear  old  fellow,  you  remember  that  on  leaving 
Lyons  I  regretted  not  having  been  able  to  go  up  there 
to  our  dear  father.  Well,  it  worries  me.  If  you 
could  go  with  Auguste  and  say  a  little  prayer  for  us 
both,  it  would  be  a  good  thing.  If  it  is  possible, 
please  do  so,  dear  Paul.  But  if  you  cannot,  don't 
tell  Auguste  to  go  alone ;  he  has  suffered  too  much 
already." 

Paul  rejoined  his  brother,  "and  everybody  says, 
'Voilct,  le  Flandrin  tout  entier !' "  The  two  artists 
established  themselves  in  No.  14  Rue  de  1'Abbaye, 
and  there  Flandrin  continued  to  live  until  the  final 
journey  to  Rome,  in  1863,  where  he  ended  his  days. 


148  SAINT  SEVER  IN. 

Hippolyte's  letters  to  Auguste  continue  to  urge  study. 
"  Work,  raise  the  tone  of  your  mind,  think  of  all  that 
is  beautiful  and  expansive,  and  if  you  can,  read.  I 
shall  for  ever  sing  the  same  song ;  one  must  renew, 
revive  one's  ideas.  Forgive  me  for  perpetually  bother 
ing  you,  but  I  am  too  thoroughly  convinced  of  the 
value  of  the  advice  not  to  repeat  it  continually. 
Homer,  Plutarch,  Tacitus,  Virgil,  and  such  inspire  the 
beauty  which  we  love." 

The  commission  for  Saint  Severin  had  been  given  to 
Flandrin,  and  at  the  end  of  the  year  he  writes  : — 

"  PARIS,  Dec.  23,  1839. 

"My  cartoons  occupy  me  greatly  with  all  the 
necessary  study  for  them,  to  say  nothing  of  all  the 
painters  and  masons  one  has  to  direct.  All  this  too 
in  about  five  hours'  daylight,  and  such  daylight  too  ! 
Paris  is  a  gutter — a  very  swamp — through  which  one 
must  paddle  to  pay  visits,  and  comply  with  the  exi 
gencies  of  this  ridiculous  world.  (Dear  Rome,  where 
art  thou  ?)  Oh,  how  often  I  get  into  a  rage,  and  would 
fain  get  rid  of  all  this  world's  nonsense  !  But  one 
must  live.  In  this  famous  Paris  people  won't  hunt 
you  out,  you  must  appear,  and  very  often  the  most 
impudent  fares  best.  I  have  not  yet  been  able  to 
return  to  the  Ministere.  I  cannot  forget  all  the  pro 
ceedings  about  my  picture,  and  nothing  short  of 


INDEPENDENCE.  149 

necessity  will  take  me  there  again.  I  know  people 
who  are  quite  content  to  spend  a  couple  of  hours 
every  Thursday  in  M.  Cave's  antechamber,  and  who 
accept  his  bad  humour  as  well  as  his  good  humour ; 
but  I  am  sure  you  would  not  like  it  any  better  than  I 
do.  Poor  Paul  is  still  less  of  a  visitor,  and  still  less 
fortunate.  Neither  portraits  nor  pictures,  nothing 
befalls  him,  not  the  smallest  bit  of  provender,  and 
consequently  it  is  impossible  for  him  to  follow  your 
advice  about  laying  by.  As  to  me,  I  can  do  no 
better.  We  shall  soon  both  be  driven  to  our  last 
resources,  for  they  will  advance  me  nothing  for  the 
Chapel  until  the  cartoons  are  done,  and  even  then  the 
money  paid  in  will  be  swallowed  up  at  once  by  the 
work-people,  who  are  already  putting  in  their  claims." 

Hippolyte's  watchful  interest  for  Auguste  did  not 
flag.  He  writes  : — 

"PARIS,  Feb.  5,  1840. 

"  ....  In  your  last  letter  you  speak  of  not 
coming  to  Paris.  I  cannot  consent  to  that.  How  can 
you  profit  by  the  Exhibition  ?  You  must  see  yourself 
and  others  there,  or  else  not  work  at  all  for  exhibi 
tions,  as  it  would  be  quite  a  mistake  to  judge  yourself 
according  to  the  favour  or  rejection  of  the  public. 
You  must  study  yourself  there.  It  is  all  very  well  to 
say  that  you  are  held  fast  by  your  pupils.  You  might 


1 50  A  UGUSTE  'S  PICTURES. 

easily  leave  them  for  a  fortnight,  and  let  us  enjoy  a 
glimpse  of  our  brother." 

"Feb.  6,  1840. — This  evening  late  we  received  your 
pictures,  all  arrived  in  good  health.  You  can  imagine 
our  impatience  unpacking  them,  but  I  should  have 
liked  you  to  witness  our  joy  in  recognising  a  quantity 
of  delightful  things.  To-day,  before  it  was  light,  we 
were  at  your  pictures,  and  according  to  your  per 
mission  we  have  rubbed,  glazed,  softened,  deepened 
little  odd  touches,  all  things  which  you  would  have 
done  yourself  if  you  had  had  a  week  to  spare.  But  I 
tell  you  that  we  were  very  much  satisfied.  You  should 
have  seen  Louis'  delight." 

Louis  Lamothe  was  first  a  pupil  of  Auguste,  who 
sent  him  in  November  1839  to  his  brother's  care,  and 
to  the  end  Lamothe  remained  the  devoted  friend  and 
assistant  of  Hippolyte  Flandrin.  Auguste's  picture 
was  duly  sent  to  the  Exhibition. 

"PARIS,  March  6,  1840. 

"  When  we  get  you  we  will  tell  you  the  faults  we 
find  with  your  picture.  Meanwhile  all  we  can  say  is, 
that  it  has  pleased  us  very  much,  as  well  as  many 
others,  artists  and  friends,  for  I  must  tell  you  that  it 
appeared  in  a  sort  of  Exhibition  we  had  at  home  for  a 
few  days. 

"  The  Salon  opened  yesterday,  and  I  want  to  tell 


OPERA  TION  FOR  SQ  UINT1NG.  ^ 


151 


you  that  you  are  very  well  placed.  You  are  seen,  and 
gain  more  than  you  lose.  So  all  is  for  the  best,  and 
it  comforts  us  a  little  for  the  horrible  place  assigned  to 
our  poor  Paul's  four  pictures ;  but  he  is  very  brave, 
and  does  not  allow  himself  to  be  cast  down,  and  I 
have  a  firm  conviction  that  he  will  soon  rise,  as  to 
talent,  above  those  highest  placed  and  most  thought 
of.  I  am  sorry  that  you  can't  come  now,  because 
naturally  I  lose  a  certain  time  through  the  Exhibition, 
which  we  could  have  spent  together,  whereas  by  and 
bye,  when  you  come,  I  shall  be  in  full  chapel  work, 
and  as  they  hurry  me  it  will  be  difficult  to  leave  it." 

Flandrin's  wish  that  his  mother  should  come  to 
Paris  was  fulfilled  this  year,  and  it  is  touching  to  find 
him  making  little  arrangements  for  the  comfort  of  her 
journey, — with  daughter-like  care,  begging  her  to  keep 
her  feet  warm,  planning  to  meet  her  at  the  bureau  on 
her  arrival,  trying  to  make  her  comfortable  in  the 
little  room,  doing  his  best  to  amuse  her  and  be  her 
companion,  although  so  pressed  with  work  that,  as  he 
tells  Auguste  in  a  letter  of  April  ist,  he  "has  not  a 
moment  of  rest,  really  not  time  to  eat." 

Flandrin  had  always  been  subject  to  a  squint,  and 
when  the  supposed  discovery  was  made,  that  by  means 
of  an  operation  severing  a  particular  muscle  in  the 
eye  this  deformity  could  be  rectified,  he  readily 
consented  to  undergo  the  treatment.  At  the  moment 


152  FAILURE  OF  SIGHT. 

the  operation  appeared  to  be  successful,  but  his  eyes 
soon  recovered  their  normal  condition,  and  he 
squinted  as  much  as  ever,  with  the  undesirable 
addition  of  a  rapid  failure  of  sight  in  his  right  eye, 
which  had  always  been  weaker  than  the  other. 
Before  long  this  right  eye  became  perfectly  useless, 
and  for  years  all  Flandrin's  work  was  done  under 
the  difficulty  of  such  an  imperfect  sight.  He  writes 
to  Auguste : — 

"PARIS,  Feb.  19,  1841. 

"  Tell  mama  that  my  eye  is  mending,  and  will 
soon  be  well.  People  here  have  been  so  wonderfully 
kind,  they  have  taken  as  much  interest  in  it  as  if  it 
were  an  important  matter.  It  got  known,  and  the 
house  was  always  full  of  visitors,  whose  sympathy  I 
fully  appreciate.  .  .  .  Adieu — I  am  forbidden  to  tire 
myself,  which  does  not  coincide  with  all  my  business, 
for  I  never  was  so  pressed." 

11  Feb.  24,  1841. — I  know  you  would  be  pleased  at 
the  success  of  the  operation.  .  .  .  Unfortunately  the 
last  few  days  there  has  been  some  going  back.  At 
times  the  eye  returns  to  its  old  position,  but  they  hope 
that  as  it  recovers  strength  it  will  keep  right.  I  have 
suffered  enough  to  deserve  thorough  success  ;  and  the 
anxiety  caused  by  this  little  fluctuation  was  very  keen 
at  first,  but  we  must  bear  what  cannot  be  helped,  and 
trust  everything  to  God's  Grace." 


CHA  TEA  U  DP:  DAMPIERRE.  153 

At  this  time  Flandrin  undertook  to  paint  the  great 
hall  of  the  Chateau  de  Dampierre,  and  it  was  when 
about  to  go  thither  that  he  wrote  urging  Auguste  and 
his  mother  to  come  and  live  with  him  and  Paul  in 
Paris, — all  the  tender  consideration  for  her  comfort 
and  desire  for  his  brother's  advancement,  which  were 
so  marked  a  part  of  his  character,  taking  part  in  his 
arguments. 

"  We  want  you.  Is  it  not  a  trial  for  those  who  love 
one  another  to  live  apart,  perpetually  sighing  after 
reunion  ?  Do  what  you  will,  our  dear  mother  must 
have  long  seasons  of  solitude  when  you  are  at  work  ; 
but  among  the  three  we  could  give  her  more  constant 
companionship — if  not  one,  it  could  be  another. 
Moreover,  when  I  look  at  your  portrait  of  M. 
Desguidi,  I  say  that  it  is  a  pity  to  hide  away  such 
talents,  which  would  increase  here  more  rapidly  and 
more  surely,  besides  finding  better  opportunity  for 
coming  to  light.  Think  of  all  this,  but  don't  be 
too  long  thinking.  Half  one's  life  is  spent  in  pro 
jects  !  .  .  ." 

In  April  1841  Flandrin  writes  in  high  spirits  about 
his  work,  though  so  hurried  and  pressed  about  the  wall 
paintings  at  Dampierre,  that  he  had  to  leave  Paris 
just  as  the  Exhibition  opened,  and  as  the  public  was 
admitted  to  see  his  Chapel  in  Saint  Severin.  He  and 
Louis  Lamothe  worked  from  six  in  the  morning  to  six 


154  LEGION  OF  HONOUR. 

in  the  evening ;  but  Flandrin  never  shrank  from  work, 
though  before  he  had  finished  his  paintings  at  Dam- 
pierre,  he  fell  ill  from  over-pressure,  and  from  the  bad 
air  he  breathed,  shut  up  in  a  close  hall  with  a  quantity 
of  other  painters  at  work.  The  Chapel  met  with 
great  admiration,  and,  what  Flandrin  valued  more 
than  the  approbation  of  Prefect,  Municipal  Council 
and  Institut, — Varcollier,  whose  judgment  M.  Ingres 
esteemed  highly,  wrote  a  highly  commendatory 
critique  of  it.  A  further  testimony  to  his  merits 
appeared  in  his  nomination  as  a  member  of  the 
Legion  d'Honneur,  and  the  man's  simple,  unselfish 
character  comes  out  in  the  way  he  announces  this  fact 
to  his  mother  and  brother. 

"PARIS,  Jane  24,  1841. 

"  I  lose  no  time  in  telling  you  the  news  which  M. 
Ingres  has  brought  to  celebrate  your  fete  and  mine. 
The  King  appoints  me  a  Member  of  the  Legion  of 
Honour,  and  I  am  happy  to  see  the  pleasure  it  gives 
to  our  friends.  I  am  certain  of  yours,  and  that  of  our 
relations  and  friends  at  Lyons,  which  greatly  increases 
the  value  of  the  honour  conferred  on  me.  I  heartily 
long  for  the  same  to  be  granted  to  my  dear  Auguste 
and  Paul,  who  only  need  full  opening  to  show  their 
talent,  to  obtain  their  deserts.  .  .  ." 

Flandrin's    stedfast    mind  on  religious  subjects   is 


MATRIMONY.  155 


put  forth  in  a  plain  practical  way,  when  replying  to  his 
brother  Auguste,  who  had  asked  his  advice  on  the 
subject  of  matrimony. 

"  PARIS,  July  18,  1841. 

"  With  respect  to  ...  believe  me,  even  if  a  man 
has  allowed  his  religion  to  grow  slack  in  his  heart  for 
long,  it  is  dangerous  to  become  united  with  a  woman 
of  a  lower  standard.  Those  differences  which  seem 
unimportant  at  first  may  by  and  bye  become  causes 
of  disunion,  especially  where  there  are  children,  and 
without  wishing  to  hinder  or  weaken  the  religious 
instruction  they  receive,  father  or  mother  find  them 
selves,  if  not  condemned,  at  least  accused  by  their 
young  ones.  And  besides,  you  know  as  well  as  I  do 
that  it  is  in  religion  only  (we  have  a  beautiful  illustra 
tion  of  it  in  our  mother)  that  we  can  find  any  real 
strength  amid  trials  and  sorrows.  If  a  man  feels  this 
sincerely  and  deeply,  what  a  misery  not  to  share  the 
conviction  fully  with  her  whom  he  loved  !  Consider 
all  this,  my  dear  fellow,  and  think  it  well  over." 

And  a  little  later  he  says  on  the  same  subject :  "  I 
want  you  to  have  a  wife  who  loves  you  heartily,  and 
above  all  of  a  high  tone  of  mind.  That  seems  to 
me  the  most  important  thing  to  be  wished,  for  it 
includes  what  may  be  called  the  ordinary  gifts,  those 
everyday  virtues  which  affect  the  happiness  of  life  at 
every  hour." 


156  "  GENS  ETABLISr 

Apparently  the  advice  was  followed,  for  Auguste 
Flandrin  did  not  marry.  Hippolyte  spent  part  of 
that  autumn  at  Lyons,  and  wrote  of  his  brother's 
works  as  advancing  greatly  in  breadth  and  solidity. 
Returning  to  Paris,  he  continued  actively  to  promote 
Auguste's  professional  interests,  getting  some  of  his 
portraits  (which  the  younger  brother  criticises  freely 
though  lovingly)  into  the  Exhibition  of  1842,  where 
his  own  picture  of  "  Saint  Louis  dictant  ses  Etablisse- 
ments,"1  was  exhibited ;  and  continuing  to  urge  the 
plan  already  proposed,  for  the  whole  family  to  live 
together  in  Paris,  where  he  tells  his  mother  he  now 
has  a  housekeeper  to  cook  and  take  care  of  things, 
living  quite  like  "gens  etablis."  His  affectionate 
heart  seems  to  have  craved  for  his  mother's  presence. 
"  May  God  long  preserve  you  to  your  children,"  he 
writes  to  her,  "  and  render  you  happy  in  their  love.  I 
trust  my  father  sees  and  knows  it  all ;  he  knows  that 
we  do  not  forget  him.  His  memory  is  precious  and 
honourable  to  us — happy  the  children  who  can  keep 
such  memories  of  their  parents.  Dearest  mother,  I 
know  that  these  remembrances  do  not  sadden  you — 
they  are  ever  with  you,  and  it  is  so  comfortable  to 
talk  of  what  one  loves."  And  to  Auguste  he  says, 
"  May  God  preserve  our  mother  to  us,  and  allow  us 
to  share  in  your  care  for  her.  May  the  reunion  I  have 
1  Now  in  the  Palais  du  Senat. 


DEA  TH  OF  THE  D  UC  D '  ORLEANS.  1 5  7 

so  long  desired  come  to  pass,  so  that  we  may  all 
enjoy  one  another  for  such  time  as  is  given  us.  Time 
does  indeed  pass  very  quickly,  and  I  regret  above 
all  not  to  be  living  for  those  I  love  best." 

Letter  after  letter  is  full  of  the  like  affectionate 
urgency.  In  spite  of  pressing  work,  Dampierre  was  fin 
ished  at  the  end  of  May  1842,  with  a  last  most  fatiguing 
effort  in  painting  the  ceiling  (for  Flandrin  suffered 
cruelly  from  rheumatism) ;  a  portrait  of  Mademoiselle 
Delessert,  which  he  says  "  frightens  me  horribly  ;"  and 
preparation  for  his  great  frescoes  in  Saint  Germain  des 
Pres,  a  work  just  entrusted  to  him.  His  tender  heart  was 
sorely  touched  by  the  sad  death  of  the  Due  d'Orleans, 
July  13,  1842,  which,  he  says,  had  thrown  all  Paris 
into  gloom  and  mourning,  and  more  than  ever  he 
longed  to  be  united  to  his  own  dearly-loved  ones. 
That  was  the  last  letter  he  ever  wrote  to  his  brother 
Auguste,  who  was  suddenly  seized  with  brain-fever, 
from  which  he  did  not  recover.  The  instant  Hippolyte 
heard  of  his  brother's  illness,  he  left  everything,  and 
started  for  Lyons,  arriving  there  August  23rd.  Auguste 
recognised  his  brothers,  and  showed  signs  of  pleasure 
at  seeing  them,  but  could  not  speak,  and  in  a 
few  days  he  died,  lovingly  tended  to  the  last  by  his 
two  brothers  and  his  mother.  Flandrin  writes  to  a 
friend : — 


r  58  DEA  TH  OF  A  UGUSTE. 

"LYONS,  Sept.  i,  1842. 

"  It  is  all  over,  and  this  morning  we  laid  him  in  his 
last  earthly  resting-place.  From  the  time  we  got  here 
we  watched  the  disease  advancing  steadily,  but  still 
there  was  some  hope,  and  to  the  end  everything  pos 
sible  was  done,  but  vainly.  The  last  agony  began  about 
five  o'clock  on  Tuesday  morning,  and  he  was  gone 
by  ten  o'clock.  We  closed  his  eyes,  and  after  a  loving 
embrace,  we  left  him,  to  devote  ourselves  to  our  poor 
mother.  Her  resignation  is  very  beautiful,  but  it  is  a 
heavy  blow.  .  .  .  Our  dear  brother's  death  has  been 
generally  and  deeply  felt  in  the  town.  Almost  every 
one  of  any  position  attended  the  funeral  this  morn 
ing,  and  this  last  proof  of  respect  and  affection  was 
very  soothing  to  us.  You  knew  him,  and  I  am  sure 
you  will  regret  him.  Nous  etions  si  Men  a  trois  !  Now 
we  seem  to  have  lost  so  much.  So  we  must  draw  all 
the  closer  to  our  friends.  .  .  ." 

And  to  Ambroise  Thomas,  Flandrin  writes  mourn 
fully  : — "  Now  that  the  first  stunning  grief  is  past,  if  you 
only  knew  how  deep  our  grief  is  !  Everything  seems 
to  feed  and  increase  it.  It  was  so  good  to  be  three, 
and  when  there  are  only  two,  one  seems  so  near  being 
left  alone  !  Sad  indeed  for  the  one  left  last !  For 
give  this  outpour  of  weakness,  but  there  it  is,  in  the 
bottom  of  my  heart.  The  one  who  seemed  so  strong, 


FLANDRIN'S  MARRIA  GE.  159 

so  full  of  life,  has  been  taken  so  suddenly  from  us. 
On  the  very  first  day  he  said  that  he  felt  himself  taken 
for  death.  Our  poor  mother  feels  this  severe  blow 
very  keenly,  but  with  great  courage.  We  must  not 
be  ungrateful  to  God,  but  thank  Him  for  sparing  her 
to  us." 

His  letters  of  that  autumn  to  his  mother  are  natu 
rally  full  of  the  beloved  one  who  had  gone  from  them, 
and  the  tenderness  of  his  consolations  to  the  bereaved 
mother  are  very  touching.  Hippolyte  was  himself  about 
to  carry  out  the  good  advice  he  had  given  to  Auguste, 
and  to  unite  himself  to  a  wife  who  was  likeminded 
and  who  would  strengthen  him  in  all  that  was  good. 
His  mother's  approbation  was  anxiously  and  dutifully 
sought  when  he  resolved  to  make  Mademoiselle  Aimee 
Ancelot  his  wife. 

"We  rejoice  in  your  consent,  which  we  hold  to  be 
an  indispensable  blessing  in  so  weighty  a  matter.  I 
shall  take  the  good  tidings  this  day  to  her  family, 
thereby  adding  to  the  kindness  with  which  they  receive 
me — all  are  prepared  to  love  you.  The  more  I  see  of 
them  the  happier  I  am.  .  .  .  We  hope  to  be  married 
about  Easter.  Your  presence  cannot  be  dispensed 
with,  indeed  we  would  willingly  watt  to  have  you 
present.  I  am  grieved  to  have  to  write  so  hurriedly, 
for  on  such  an  occasion  there  is  very  much  I  should 
like  to  say.  But  to  be  brief,  dearest  mother,  I  will 


160  AIMEE. 


only  say  that  I  accept  this  great  happiness  with  trust 
in  God  and  in  my  good  intentions.  Your  prayers 
cannot  fail  to  bring  us  a  blessing.  May  the  event  bring 
some  gladness  to  your  poor  heart,  so  sorely  tried,  yet 
still  so  fresh  and  warm  and  loving.  On  Ash-Wednes 
day  we  heard  Mass  for  our  dear  Auguste.  It  was  six 
months  from  the  day,  and  we  assisted,  feeling  our  loss 
as  freshly  as  in  the  first  days.  Pray  continually, 
dearest  mother,  for  him  and  for  us." 

"  The  more  I  know  of  her  who  is  about  to  be  my 
wife,"  he  writes  to  Ambroise  Thomas,  "  the  more  I 
love  her,  and  rejoice  ;"  and  on  May  loth,  the  day 
before  the  wedding,  he  writes  to  the  same  friend  : — 
"  I  am  very  happy,  I  am  just  winning  my  prize. 
...  I  find  even  more  than  I  could  have  dared  to 
hope  for  !  She  is  charming,  so  gentle  and  tender. 
Rejoice  with  me  !  Please  come  rather  early,  for  the 
organist  is  not  in  Paris,  and  if  you  come  at  a  quarter 
to  twelve  or  half-past  eleven,  you  can  feel  your  ground. 
Try  to  remember  some  of  the  beautiful  bits  we  used 
to  be  so  fond  of,  the  Ave  verum,  etc." 

The  marriage  took  place  May  n,  1843,  and 
Madame  Flandrin  must  have  felt  that,  as  Hippolyte 
said,  she  had  gained  another  child,  rather  than  lost 
her  son,  or  his  devoted  tender  care  and  affection. 
"  Your  trois  petits  love  you  dearly ;"  he  used  to  write, 
ever  associating  Aimee  as  well  as  Paul  in  all  his 


SAINT  GERMAIN  DES  PRES.  161 

tenderness  to  his  mother.  He  was  occupied  from 
May  1842  to  the  end  of  1844  with  the  decoration  of 
the  sanctuary  of  Saint  Germain  des  Pre's,  paintings  in 
which  the  large  subjects  consist  of  the  Entry  into 
Jerusalem  and  our  Lord  bearing  His  Cross  on  Calvary, 
as  also  of  figures  on  the  left  side  representing  Faith, 
Hope,  Charity,  and  Patience,  Saint  Germain  and  S. 
Doctrovee  (the  first  Abbot  of  Saint  Germain  des 
Pres)  receiving  the  model  of  the  church  from  Childe- 
bert  and  Ultrogoth ;  and  on  the  right  side,  Justice, 
Prudence,  Temperance  and  Strength,  with  Saint 
Vincent,  the  Pope  Alexander  III.,  the  Abbe  Morard, 
Saint  Benedict  and  King  Robert.  The  paintings  in 
the  choir  were  of  a  later  date,  1846  to  1848,  and  those 
in  the  nave  were  in  progress  from  1855  to  1861. 

Flandrin's  heart  was  in  his  work ;  he  repeatedly 
thanks  God  for  having  given  him  the  opportunity  of 
devoting  himself  to  religious  painting,  and  the  tenor 
of  his  thoughts,  always  calmly  devout,  seems  to 
have  become  increasingly  so  under  the  influence  of 
his  sacred  task. 

"  Just  now  as  I  went  to  work,"  he  writes  to  his 
mother,  "  I  begged  the  Blessed  Virgin  to  go  and  see 
you  in  your  dark  little  corner  by  the  clock,  where  I 
fancy  you  must  be  very  triste  in  this  bad  weather.  I 
am  sure  she  will  have  given  heed  to  my  prayer.  She 
must  love  you, — you  are  so  good  and  kind  and 


1 62  QUEEN  MARIE  AMELIE. 

patient,  and  you  bend  your  will  so  gently  and  sub 
missively  to  God's  Will.     I  only  wish  we  could  imitate 
you  as  much  as  we  love  you  !"     Among  other  works 
finished  at   this  time  (1844-5)  was  a  picture  painted 
for  the  Prince  de  Berghes,  for  his  mortuary  chapel  at 
Saint  Martory,  near  Saint  Gaudens  (Haute  Garonne). 
It  was  to  be  a  Mater  dolorosa,  and  Flandrin  took  as 
the  motto  of  his  picture  the  words  of  Jeremiah,  "  O 
all  ye  that  pass  by  behold  and  see  if  there  be  any 
sorrow  like  unto  my  sorrow."  J     He  described  it  him 
self  as  "the  Blessed  Virgin  at  the  foot  of  the  Cross, 
offering  the  instruments  of  our  Saviour's  Passion  to 
Christians  as  a  subject  of  meditation."      This   was 
painted  during  the  cold  dark  days  which  would  not 
allow  of  his  working  at  Saint  Germain  des  Pres.     Per 
haps  the  best  tribute  that  could  have  been  paid  to 
this  picture  was  involuntarily  offered  by  the  Queen 
Marie   Amelie,  whose  mother's  heart,   still  bleeding 
from  the  awfully  sudden  death  of  the  Due  d'Orleans, 
was  transfixed  by  the  beauty  and  sympathy  of  Flan- 
drin's  representation  of  the  Mother  of  Sorrows,  so  that 
on  first  seeing  the  picture  in  the  Exhibition  of  1845, 
she  burst  into  a  flood  of  tears,  and  stood  gazing  in 
rapt  earnestness  before  it.     It  was  no  mere  artistic 
effect  that  could  do  this,  but  the  painter's  life  was  in 
keeping  with  the  subjects  on  which  he  worked.     He 
1  Lamentations  i.  12. 


A  FIRST-BORN  SON.  163 

does  not  say  much  in  his  letters  upon  religious  sub 
jects,  but  there  is  an  undercurrent  of  practical  devo 
tion  and  serious  thought  which  betokens  the  constant 
influence  religion  had  over  all  he  did.  That  his 
duties  were  regularly  attended  to,  and  as  no  mere 
form,  such  sentences  in  his  letters  as  the  following 
show  : — "  April  i,  1845. — Yesterday  we  all  three  kept 
our  Easter  (avons  fait  nos  paques)  together,  and  con 
sequently  together  prayed  for  you.  It  is  a  great 
happiness  when  fulfilling  so  holy  a  duty  to  see  those 
one  loves  beside  one,  though,  alas  !  they  were  not  all 
there  !" 

A  fresh  source  of  happiness  was  opened  this  year 
to  Flandrin,  when  he  became  a  father;  and  an 
enthusiastic  admirer  of  his  baby  son  he  was  from  the 
first.  He  writes  to  his  own  mother  : — 

"  PARIS,  Oct.  9,  1845. 

"  Dearest  Mama, — I  have  good  news  for  you.  A 
little  man  came  into  the  world  last  night.  He  and 
his  mother  are  doing  well,  the  doctor  is  satisfied,  and 
I  leave  you  to  imagine  whether  I  am.  I  know  how 
glad  you  will  be.  ...  Oh  the  delight  of  hearing  the 
first  cry  of  this  little  cherished  being,  so  beloved 
already  !  You,  dearest  mother,  know  what  the  delight 
is,  and  I  can  see  you  now  thanking  God  for  having 
given  it  to  your  children.  Naturally  we  think  the 


1 64  BABY  WORSHIP. 

little  darling  charming,  and  really,  prejudice  apart,  I 
think  he  is  much  prettier  than  most  children  of  his 
age.  We  dwell  upon  that,  because  there  is  nothing 
else  to  be  expected  of  him  now,  but  later  on  we 
must  hope  to  find  that  he  has  a  good  heart,  and  to 
train  it  well.  I  mean  him  to  love  everything  good 
and  beautiful ;  in  short,  I  intend  him  to  be  a  thorough 
good  fellow,  able  to  love  and  worthy  of  being  loved." 

And  again  : — 

"PARIS,  Dec.  15,  1845. 

"  I  must  tell  you,  dear  mother,  that  our  dear  child 
gets  on  wonderfully.  He  has  grown  so  as  to  surprise 
everybody,  and  his  intelligence  is  beginning  to  wake 
up ;  he  follows  one  with  his  eyes,  and  gives  one  such 
pretty  little  smiles  when  one  talks  to  him ;  he  listens 
with  a  kind  of  attention,  sometimes  answering  with 
the  sweetest  little  cooing.  When  he  laughs,  it  is 
perfectly  delicious,  and  like  a  sunbeam  lighting  up  the 
house.  Of  course  I  see  it  all  with  a  father's  eyes — 
somewhat  prejudiced — but  nevertheless,  dear  mother, 
everybody  thinks  your  little  grandson  very  charming. 
We  will  try  to  make  him  grow  up  good  ....  We 
have  made  the  little  one  kiss  this  letter — so  he  sends 
you  his  own  kiss." 

"  PARIS,  Feb.  20,  1846. 

"  ....  I  wish  I  could  send  you  a  portrait  of  your 


HOME  LIFE.  165 


little  grandson,  with  the  gracious  smile  which  is  so 
bewitching,  but,  alas  !  everything  of  that  sort  is  so 
changeable,  so  fugitive,  so  bad  to  catch  !  .  .  .  .  Oh 
how  I  wish  you  could  watch  our  darling  child's 
growth,  his  good  looks,  his  fun,  and  his  attempts  to 
chatter  !  If  you  could  only  see  his  delight  on  seeing 
us  when  he  wakes  up — how  he  flutters  legs  and  arms 
all  at  once,  like  a  little  bird  that  fain  would  fly,  if 
only  its  feathers  were  not  still  too  short !  .  .  .  I  send 
you  two  or  three  scratches  made  of  the  little  fellow, 
but  though  they  are  like  after  a  fashion,  they  are 
quite  without  his  life  and  grace." 

At  the  end  of  a  technical  letter  to  his  friend 
Lacuria,  we  find  the  admiring  father  reporting  "  notre 
petit  to  be  a  model  for  Raffaele's  beautiful  children," 
and  moreover  gifted  with  a  laugh  quite  superior  to 
ordinary  babies,  able  to  listen  with  intelligent  attention; 
in  short,  altogether  a  wondrous  piece  of  babydom ! 
Remembering  those  early  days  of  privation  and  dis 
comfort  in  Paris,  so  bravely  borne  by  the  artist  brothers, 
it  is  pleasant  to  find  them  leading  a  life,  unexciting 
and  hard-working  enough  certainly,  but  comfortable 
and  happy,  as  well-filled  and  industrious. 

"PARIS,  Jan.  10,  1847. 
"This  is  how  our  winter  days  are  spent.     Up  at 


1 66  REPUTATION. 


eight  o'clock — not  very  early  to  be  sure,  but  I  must 
tell  the  truth.  So — up  at  eight  o'clock — quick,  a  cup 
of  milk,  and  then  we  are  in  the  studio  till  eleven, 
when  real  breakfast  comes.  At  half-past  eleven 
quickly  back  to  the  studio,  where  we  work  till  five 
o'clock.  Then  by  wolf's  light  (entre  chien  et  loup) 
a  run  on  the  Quai  Voltaire,  if  the  weather  permits, 
which  it  does  not  always.  Dinner  at  six.  In  the 
middle  of  the  repast  the  heir  is  brought  in  and  takes 
his  place  between  papa  and  mama,  in  his  high  chair. 
He  coaxes  us  a  great  deal,  eats  a  little,  and  amuses  us 
endlessly.  After  that  come  games  and  rolling  on  the 
carpet,  then  he  grows  sleepy  and  is  undressed,  making 
his  round  of  kisses,  and  so  disappears.  Father  and 
uncle  then  set  to  work  at  drawings,  compositions, 
reading  or  writing  connected  with  their  work,  till  their 
time  for  getting  sleepy  comes  too  !  Meanwhile,  after 
her  child's  toilette,  and  after  having  mended  stockings, 
gowns  and  caps,  my  dear  wife  sometimes  goes  to  the 
piano  and  practises  for  a  bit,  which  is  always  a 
pleasure  to  us.  And  so  my  days  go  by.  ..." 

Flandrin  had  now  no  need  to  look  out  anxiously 
for  work — his  name  was  well  known,  and  as  he  says 
himself,  he  was  overwhelmed  with  commissions, 
although  refusing  numbers,  and  he  only  wished  for 
ten  hands  !  His  reputation  was  fast  making  him  a 


ROYALTIES,  167 


lion  in  the  world,  and  as  such  he  found  himself  sought 
and  feted.  His  account  of  an  evening  at  the  Due  de 
Nemours',  given  to  his  mother,  is  written  with  all  the 
simplicity  of  his  early  days  in  the  garret  au  5eme : — 
"  Aimee  told  you,  dearest  mama,  that  I  had  been  asked 
to  Court.  Was  not  that  something  wonderful  ?  Never 
theless  it  is  quite  true.  I  went,  and  was  very  much  inter* 
ested.  It  was  a  concert  at  the  Due  de  Nemours'.  I 
made  myself  smart — black  coat,  white  waistcoat,  white 
tie,  black  trousers,  silk  stockings,  varnished  boots,  but 
woe's  me  !  going  up  the  staircase,  I  perceived  that 
every  one  in  sight  was  in  knee-breeches  !  It  was  very 
alarming,  especially  as  there  is  a  much  stricter  etiquette 
at  the  Duke's  salon  than  in  the  King's.  However,  on 
I  went,  and  in  a  few  minutes  I  had  the  comfort  of 
seeing  one,  two,  three,  and  in  course  of  time  a  good 
many  trousers  to  keep  me  in  countenance.  The 
Duke  and  Duchess  de  Nemours  made  a  round  of  the 
salons,  speaking  to  their  guests,  and  trying  to  say 
something  courteous  to  every  one.  I  pitied  them 
with  all  my  heart,  for  it  really  is  a  hard  task.  A  little 
later  the  King  and  Queen  of  the  Belgians,  the  Duke 
and  Duchess  d'Aumale  and  de  Montpensier  arrived  : 
the  ladies  went  into  the  concert-room,  the  princes 
stayed  among  the  men,  talking  with  ministers,  peers, 
deputies,  savants,  literary  men  and  artists.  The  Due 
de  Montpensier,  to  whom  I  was  presented,  came  and 


1 68  DELICA CY  OF  FEELING. 

thanked  me  for  a  drawing  I  made  some  months  ago 
for  his  album,  referred  to  several  of  my  works  with  a 
most  winning  grace,  and  finally  (what  quite  won  my 
heart)  asked  after  my  brother  and  his  'beautiful 
pictures.'  The  Duchesse  de  Nemours  too  was  very 
gracious.  About  midnight  the  concert  came  to  an 
end,  the  royalties  retired,  the  crowd  dispersed  quietly, 
and  I  came  home  to  my  wife,  and  tried  to  tell  her  all 
about  the  splendid  apartments,  the  ceremonial,  the 
princes  and  princesses,  the  great  people,  and  all  the 
other  wonders  I  had  seen  !  " 

The  success  of  Flandrin's  paintings  in  the  choir  of 
Saint  Germain  des  Pre's  was  so  great,  that  in  December 
1846  the  Municipal  Council  asked  him  to  undertake 
the  proposed  decoration  of  the  Church  of  Saint 
Vincent  de  Paul,  a  work  most  attractive  to  Flandrin 
from  an  art  point  of  view,  as  well  as  in  respect  of  the 
two  hundred  thousand  francs  offered  with  the  com 
mission.  But  with  his  usual  absolute  unselfishness 
and  consideration  for  others,  Flandrin  refused  a 
commission  he  would  gladly  have  accepted,  out  of 
delicacy  towards  his  old  master  Ingres,  who  seems  to 
have  undertaken  the  work  and  then  resigned  it.  It 
is  not  quite  obvious  wherein  he  could  have  been 
annoyed  at  Flandrin's  acceptance  of  the  task,  for 
after  his  resignation,  and  before  the  offer  was  made  to 
Flandrin,  it  had  been  offered  to  Paul  Delaroche,  who 


P1COT.  169 


refused  it.  But  anyhow,  Flandrin  feared  to  pain  his 
beloved  master,  saying  that  "it  would  have  been  a 
grand  and  delightful  undertaking,  but  my  position  with 
respect  to  M.  Ingres  is  very  delicate,  and  I  would  far 
rather  give  up  the  undertaking  than  run  the  slightest 

risk  of  wounding  him As  I  cannot  accept  the 

work,  it  has  been  intrusted  to  M.  Picot,  a  member  of  the 
Institut,  but  the  Prefect,  in  reply  to  the  remonstrances 
of  the  Council,  has  promised  that  Saint  Germain 
shall  be  finished,  and,  to  say  the  truth,  I  think  I  should 
like  that  even  better  than  the  work  I  have  refused." 

As  it  happened,  though  Flandrin  at  last  executed 
both  these  works,  that  of  Saint  Vincent  de  Paul  was 
first  taken  in  hand ;  for  just  as  Picot  was  about  to 
begin  in  1848  the  Revolution  disturbed  everything, 
and  when  a  new  town  administration  came  into  office, 
Armand  Marrast,  the  Mayor,  withdrew  the  commission 
to  paint  the  Church  of  Saint  Vincent  from  Picot  and 
offered  it  to  Flandrin.  Disgusted  at  what  he  con 
sidered  unfair  treatment  of  a  brother  artist,  Flandrin 
declined  the  task  a  second  time,  and  it  was  only  on 
Picot's  own  urgent  representations  that  he  would 
listen  to  any  propositions  on  the  subject,  and  even 
then  he  insisted  on  Picot  taking  part  in  the  work  as 
well  as  himself.  Meanwhile,  Flandrin  worked  on  at 
Saint  Germain  des  Pre's.  In  a  letter  to  his  brother 
Paul,  dated  June  12,  1847,  and  referring  to  this 


170  WHITE  DRAPERIES. 

Church,  he  says :  .  .  .  .  "I  am  quite  worried  by  an 
idea  which  came  into  my  head  yesterday.  Remember 
ing  that  there  is  no  really  old  tradition  as  to  the 
colour  of  the  Apostles'  garments,  I  thought  I  would 
make  them  all  white.  You  know  one  day  you  said 
something  about  it,  so  all  night  long  I  thought  or 
dreamed  about  it.  These  twelve  men  uniformly  white 
would  be  much  more  imposing,  and  have  a  finer  effect 
than  broken  up  into  different  tones,  and  moreover 
they  are  in  Heaven,  around  the  Throne  of  the  Lamb. 
Morally  it  is  far  finer,  but  would  the  eye  be  as  well 
satisfied  as  the  mind  ?  Would  the  whites  harmonise 
with  the  whole  tone  of  the  decorations?  That  is 
what  I  wanted  to  try  and  find  out  to-day,  by  painting 
in  Saint  Matthew  white,  whom  you  saw  violet.  Un 
luckily  it  was  not  quite  dry,  and  the  under  tints 
transpired  somewhat,  and  consequently  the  white  is 
not  brilliant  enough  to  enable  me  to  judge  definitely 

as  to  the  effect June  i8/A — I  consulted  M. 

Ingres  and  M.  Gatteaux,  and  both  answered,  '  Don't 
do  it.'  But  notwithstanding,  after  a  night  of  in 
decision,  I  decided  on  the  white,  and  have  now 
repainted  three  figures.  MM.  Ingres  and  Gatteaux 
came  to  Saint  Germain,  and  both  exclaimed,  'Bravo  ! 
it  is  really  much  better  so ! '  entirely  approving  my 
determination  j  so  now  my  mind  is  at  rest,  and  I  am 
getting  on." 


£7:  PAUL  AT  NIMES.  171 

Another  considerable  work  was  about  to  devolve 
upon  Flandrin,  the  decoration  of  the  Church  of  St. 
Paul  at  Nirues,  in  which  he  was  assisted  by  his 
brother  Paul,  Louis  Lamothe,  already  mentioned,  and 
Paul  Baize.  In  the  autumn  of  1847  tne  two  Flan- 
drins  went  to  Nimes,  to  study  the  ground  on  which 
they  were  to  work,  and  to  overlook  the  needful  pre 
parations.  "We  are  in  a  little  hotel,  where  some  good 
people  take  ample  care  of  us,  but  I  have  been  terribly 
disappointed  on  going  to  see  the  Church  and  the 
preparatory  works,  which  are  very  far  from  what  they 
ought  to  be.  The  scaffolding  is  miserable,  and  must 
be  put  up  afresh,  and  the  walls  are  badly  prepared. 
It  is  all  very  annoying."  A  year  later,  after  a  short 
visit  to  Lyons  with  wife  and  children  (there  was  a 
second  babe  now),  Flandrin  took  up  his  quarters  at 
Nimes,  where  the  clear  blue  sky  of  the  South  recalled 
his  beloved  Rome  ;  yet  he  was  not  generally  attracted 
by  the  place,  and  seemed  to  feel  the  time  of  his  abode 
there  long.  The  Revolution  disturbed  Nimes,  always 
politically  restless,  and  Flandrin  was  prepared  for 
possible  serious  interruptions;  but  after  some  "  red  and 
socialist  banquets,"  which  produced  a  little  surface 
commotion,  the  town  returned  to  its  ordinary  aspect, 
and  was  quiet  enough.  Flandrin  writes  eagerly  to 
Ambroise  Thomas  for  intelligence  as  to  the  new  con 
stitution  and  the  general  attitude  of  Paris,  saying  that 


172  REVOLUTION  OF  1848. 

he  and  his  fellow-labourers,  engrossed  from  morning 
till  night  in  their  work,  and  hidden  in  the  church 
which  was  the  scene  of  that  work,  saw  nobody,  and 
had  no  means  of  knowing  what  was  going  on  in  the 
world  they  had  left.  For  more  than  a  month,  Hip- 
polyte  says,  they  had  not  even  received  a  letter  able 
to  put  them  at  all  up  to  the  actual  state  of  things,  or 
the  real  tone  of  Paris. 

"  In  spite  of  the  delight  of  a  work  we  rejoice  in," 
Flandrin  writes  (Dec.  15,  1848)  to  his  friend  Victor 
Baltard,  "we  are  keenly  alive  to  our  isolation  and  the 
separation  from  our  friends.  I  can  hardly  believe 
that  it  is  only  two  months  since  we  left  Paris.  The 
time,  as  a  whole,  seems  horribly  long,  although  weeks 
go  by  like  days,  and  days  like  hours.  In  order  to  get 
back  as  soon  as  possible  to  you  all,  I  use  them  to  the 
best  of  my  power.  Although  the  most  splendid 
weather  tempted  us,  and  we  should  have  liked  to  go 
and  enjoy  the  glorious  light  and  its  eifects  on  the 
rocks  and  the  fair  vegetation  of  the  South,  we  resisted 
heroically.  We  have  steadily  given  all  working  days 
up  to  work,  so  that  we  are  really  taking  shape,  and  I 
am  somewhat  surprised  myself  to  see  how  much  we 

have  been  able  to  do  in  six  weeks The  loth 

passed  off  quietly  here.  There  was  plenty  of  life  and 
animation,  but  the  most  perfect  order  everywhere. 
Louis  Napoleon  had  7000  votes ;  Ledru-Rollin  from 


VIVE  LA  CONSTITUTION!  173 

1500  to  1600;  Cavaignac  from  1200  to  1300.  Only 
it  is  said  that  Ledru-Rollin  has  a  majority  in  the  rest 
of  the  Department,  and  an  immense  number  of  votes 
all  through  the  South,  but  I  hope  that  the  Centre  and 
the  North  will  restore  things  somewhat,  and  bring 
about  a  better  result.  Meanwhile  I  say,  Vive  la  Con 
stitution  f  and  submit  with  the  most  absolute  good 
faith  to  whatever  universal  suffrage  may  bring  to  pass, 
—it  is  the  only  possible  basis  in  the  present  times  for 
a  political  structure.  And  then  I  say  with  you,  May 

God  protect  France  !   and  I  hope  on I  have 

just  received  a  letter  from  M.  Hittorf  about  Saint 
Vincent  de  Paul,  in  which  he  says,  among  other 
things,  that  Varcollier  professes  to  be  greatly  dissatis 
fied  with  me  because  of  my  coming  to  Nimes  and  my 
work  here.  I  must  confess  that  this  astonishes  me, 
and  I  can  only  say  that  I  am  very  sorry,  for  I  know 
how  friendly  he  has  been  to  me  in  all  this  business. 
But  what  brought  me  here  ?  I  am  fulfilling  a  promise, 
and  that  is  what  I  hope  all  through  life  to  do  always. 
Moreover,  I  do  not  understand  quite  how  any  one  can 
complain  of  my  inactivity,  inasmuch  as  in  three 
months  I  have  produced  all  the  sketches  and  twenty- 
four  metres  of  cartoons  for  the  town.  Anyhow,  be  so 
kind  as  to  make  my  respects  to  M.  Varcollier,  and 
tell  him  that  I  am  working  so  as  to  return  to  Paris  by 
the  beginning  of  the  season,  and  that  I  am  adding  a 


174  OBSERVANCE  OF  SUNDAY. 

third  cartoon  to  two  already  done,  which  are  about  to 
be  transferred  to  the  wall." 

"NiMES,  Jan.  5,  1849. 

"  .  .  .  .  Our  regime  here  is  much  the  same.  We 
shut  ourselves  up  within  the  four  walls  as  soon  as  it  is 
light,  and  do  not  come  out  again  till  dark.  The  days 
are  too  short,  and  we  work  by  lamplight.  We  suffer 
from  cold  and  rheumatism,  albeit  in  the  South,  and  I 
hope  we  shall  have  done  by  Easter.  I  can  tell  you  it 
will  have  been  by  pulling  hard  against  the  collar." 

It  was  during  this  pressure  of  work  that  Flandrin  had 
a  bad  fall  from  one  of  his  scaffolds,  in  which  he  was 
considerably  hurt,  but  he  did  not  give  way  to  pain 
for  an  hour  more  than  he  could  help,  and  in  a  few 
days,  while  yet  stiff  with  bruises,  he  was  again  hard 
at  work. 

Flandrin  alludes  in  one  of  the  above-quoted  letters 
to  the  "  working  days,"  and  remembering  how  little 
such  observation  is  general  in  France,  especially  per 
haps,  among  men  of  his  profession,  it  is  interesting  to 
find  that  he  observed  the  rest  of  the  Sunday.  In  a 
letter  to  his  old  master,  M.  Ingres,  he  says  that  their 
work  "  has  had  no  interruption  save  that  of  Sundays. 
I  long  to  submit  this  enormous  work  to  you,"  he  goes 
on  to  say,  "  and  to  hear  your  criticisms.  I  shall  have 
to  leave  it  so  hastily  that  I  shall  hardly  be  able  to 


LIFE  AT  NIMES.  175 

take  in  the  ensemble,  or  to  keep  a  lasting  impression  of 
it.  In  order  to  judge  of  it  and  of  myself  somewhat 
fairly,  I  should  like  to  see  it  again  at  the  end  of  six 
months.  My  good  helpers  have  been  most  devoted, 
and  I  think  we  have  executed  the  paintings  as  rapidly 
as  was  possible We  have  had  a  most  enchant 
ing  climate  during  this  winter,  and  the  rare  expedi 
tions  we  could  indulge  in  were  so  attractive  that  Paul 
thinks  of  staying  on  in  this  country  to  draw." 

April  found  Flandrin  still  at  Nimes  in  spite  of  his 
uninterruptedly  laborious  toil.  "  It  is  so  difficult  to 
finish  a  work,"  he  writes  to  Victor  Baltard,  "and  this, 
which  is  one  of  the  finest  I  could  have  to  execute,  has 
led  me  on  further  than  I  expected.  I  wish  you  could 
see  it ;  I  think  you  would  say  I  was  right  to  have 
sacrificed  and  braved  a  good  deal  in  order  to  finish  it. 
Besides,  a  host  of  bothers  which  one  could  not  foresee 
have  hindered  me,  and,  in  spite  of  a  beautiful  winter, 
we  have  worked  as  much  as  a  fortnight  together  by 
lamplight.  However,  now  I  am  really  finishing,  but 
I  am  so  weary  with  this  persistent  work  that  I  really 
must  have  a  few  days  of  rest." 

Flandrin  had  reason  to  be  satisfied  with  his  work 
at  Nimes,  which  seems  prodigious  to  have  been 
accomplished  within  the  time.  In  the  apse  he  has 
painted  a  colossal  Christ  in  Majesty,  Saints  Peter  and 
Paul  beside  Him,  and  at  His  Feet  a  king  and  a  slave, 


1 76  BISHOP  OF  N1MES. 


laying  the  one  his  crown,  the  other  his  chains,  on  the 
steps  of  the  Throne ;  on  the  choir  walls  are  three 
series  of  figures,  representing  the  Evangelists,  Arch 
angels,  and  the  Doctors  of  the  Greek  and  Latin 
Churches ;  besides  two  processions  of  Martyrs  and 
Virgins,  a  Coronation  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  and  the 
Vision  of  S.  Paul.  Nor  were  these  figures  painted 
hastily,  however  rapid  their  production  may  have  been. 
They  were  both  conceived  and  executed  in  a  spirit  of 
deep  devotion ;  as  the  Bishop  of  Nimes,  Monseigneur 
Plantier  said,  "  Flandrin  sought  to  preach  after  his 
own  manner,  and  to  him  painting  became  eloquence, 
wherewith  he  uttered  a  magnificent  profession  of  faith 
in  the  walls  of  God's  Temples." 

Bishop  Plantier  seems  to  have  been  intimate  with 
Flandrin,  and  to  have  thoroughly  appreciated  the 
artist's  deep  and  real  religion,  which  as  he  says,  had 
inspired  him  "  with  a  conscientious  love  of  art,  so  that 
painting  was  no  mere  profession  in  Flandrin's  eyes, 
but  a  ministry,  for  the  functions  of  which  he  prepared 
himself  as  an  evangelist  going  forth  to  teach.  Long 
since  I  remember  discussing  his  future  works  with  him, 
when  he  had  been  asked  to  decorate  the  Cathedral  at 
Strasbourg,  and  the  thing  which  struck  me  most 
was  the  religious  awe  with  which  he  contemplated  his 
task,  and  the  earnest  solicitude  with  which  he  col 
lected  the  materials  necessary  to  guide  him.  The 


FAITH  AND  ART.  177 


bare  idea  of  any  voluntary  shortcoming  or  negligence 
revolted  not  merely  his  artistic  feelings,  but  his  faith 
as  a  Christian.  I  shall  never  forget  his  saying  to  me 
in  the  most  touching  manner,  '  Providence  has  con 
strained  me  to  give  myself  up  rather  exclusively  to 
religious  art.'  It  was  true.  God,  Who  had  claimed 
Overbeck's  talents  for  Himself  in  Germany,  seems  in 
like  manner  to  have  claimed  Flandrin  in  France,  in 
order  to  prove  to  the  nineteenth  century,  amid  the 
reign  of  rationalism,  that  sincere  faith  and  fervent  love 
for  the  Church  are  not  incompatible  with  the  highest 
inspirations  of  art.  .  .  .  Heart  and  intellect  combined 
in  him  to  direct  his  talent.  Too  often  amongst  our 
selves  the  Christianity  of  art  is  a  mere  circumstance, 
it  renders  a  scene  from  the  Gospel  as  it  would  one 
from  Homer — its  inspirations  are  factitious  and 
shallow  j  but  in  Hippolyte  the  artist  and  Christian 
were  absolutely  one  soul,  his  compositions  and  his 
moral  graces  sprung  from  a  common  source.  He  him 
self  revered  and  worshipped  that  which  he  invited 
others  to  adore,  and  the  saints  who  became  the  heroes 
of  his  pencil  were  also  the  models  of  his  life.  .  .  . 
He  was  just  as  simple  in  the  practice  of  his  religion  as 
in  the  expression  of  his  faith,  and  the  combination  of 
simplicity  and  superiority  were  very  striking  in  him. 
If,  to  use  a  proverbial  expression,  he  possessed  la  foi 

du   charbonnier,   he   was   no   less   possessed   by   the 
M 


1 78  FLANDRIN  LEA  VES  NIMES. 

highest  faith  of  genius,  .  .  .  and  with  all  its  vigour 
he  combined  its  most  refined  delicacy.  .  .  .  Look  at 
the  procession  of  virgins  in  our  Church  of  Saint 
Paul ;  every  stroke,  their  attitude,  the  calm  purity  of 
glance,  the  seraphic  expression  of  countenance,  the 
grand  severity  of  drapery,  all  tell  of  souls  so  pure 
that  all  about  them  is  spiritualised,  so  that  merely 
the  indispensable  material  existence  remains.  And 
these  pure  forms  are  a  correct  indication  of  him  who 
traced  them — he  too  was  transparent  and  clear  as 
crystal." 

As  a  whole,  those  best  able  to  judge  have  pro 
nounced  Flandrin's  frescoes  at  Nimes  as  second  to 
those  in  Saint  Vincent  de  Paul  in  Paris.  Perhaps 
the  involuntary  preference  which  he  had  for  the  one 
place  over  the  other  may  have  told  upon  his  powers, 
and  he  continually  missed  the  sympathy  and  counsel 
which  he  liked  to  seek  from  friends,  and  which  could 
not  be  attained  in  the  Southern  city  as  in  Paris.  The 
latter  part  of  the  time  spent  at  Nimes  was  saddened 
by  the  death  of  several  friends,  as  also  by  a  severe 
illness  which  the  precious  little  Auguste  underwent ; 
and  up  to  the  moment  of  departure  Hippolyte 
was  longing  to  be  gone.  When,  however,  the  time 
really  came,  his  affectionate  heart  had  found  roots, 
as  it  was  wont  to  do  everywhere,  and  he  writes  to  his 
brother  Paul,  who  lingered  behind  :— 


VISIT  TO  LYONS.  179 

"LYONS,  May  n,  1849. 

"  I  was  grieved  to  leave  you,  and  I  felt  leaving 
Nimes  and  all  our  kind  friends  there  very  much.  We 
had  magnificent  effects  on  sky  and  mountains,  such 
poetical  sights  and  significations  !  I  think,  my  dear 
half  (not  shadow1),  you  ought  to  turn  your  attention 
specially  to  this  side  of  art.  Auguste  was  silent, 
except  when  now  and  then  a  duck  crossing  the 
road  drew  forth  a  shout  of  delight  !  Zizi  was 
very  good.  We  saluted  the  Pont  du  Gard  from 
afar.  .  .  .  We  took  the  boat  at  four  o'clock  (at 
Valence),  but  it  did  not  get  on,  and  when  we  made 
that  remark  to  the  captain  he  said  quietly,  '  Oh  no, 
it's  true  she  does  not  go  so  fast  as  the  rest,  but  she 
can  keep  on  at  it  longer  !'  So  it  ended  in  our  reach 
ing  mama  about  ten  o'clock.  She  looks  well,  and  is 
not  in  the  least  altered.  ...  If  you  notice  any 
thing  you  don't  like  in  Saint  Paul's,  I  leave  it  all  to 
you  j  do  whatever  you  think  right."  And  a  few  days 
later  he  says,  "  Thank  you  for  having  touched  up  our 
pictures.  You  will  go  and  see  them  again  as  you 
pass  through  Nimes,  won't  you,  and  tell  me  what 
impression  they  leave  on  you  ?  On  the  last  day  I 
was  not  at  all  satisfied,  and  I  cannot  shake  off  the 
recollection." 

1  This  was  in  allusion  to  Paul  Flandrin's  habit  of  modestly 
calling  himself  his  brother  Hippolyte's  "  ombre  portee" 


i8o  DISTURBANCES. 


Flandrin  reached  Lyons  quite  ill  from  the  effects  of 
overwork  and  exhaustion,  and  the  doctor  insisted  on 
his  resting  quietly  there  for  a  time.  Quiet,  however, 
was  not  to  be  had  at  command.  It  was  the  election 
time,  and  there  was  a  serious  popular  outbreak. 
Flandrin  describes  it  as  follows  : — 

"  LYONS,  June  17,  1849. 

"  The  day  before  yesterday  Lyons  was  in  great 
excitement,  every  one  expecting  news  from  Paris,  and 
in  spite  of  torrents  of  rain  people  gathered  in  groups 
all  about  the  town.  According  to  the  Red  newspapers, 
Ledru-Rollin  was  master  of  Paris,  the  President  and 
ministers  at  Vincennes.  Then  the  crowd  swarmed 
over  the  Terreaux,  and  the  quays,  singing  and  an 
nouncing  '  good  news '  for  the  next  day.  Although  the 
rain  never  stopped,  a  host  of  people  stayed  all  night 
in  front  of  the  Hotel  de  Ville,  shouting  and  hallooing. 
Some  two  hundred  were  arrested.  Yesterday  morning 
(Friday)  I  ran  over  to  the  Terreaux  to  fetch  Rene, 
Mariette  being  ill.  The  place  was  crowded,  and  the 
Hotel  de  Ville  full  of  troops  ;  only  what  is  their  mind? 
.  .  .  The  struggle  was  not  believed  to  be  so  near, 
although  we  heard  of  sentinels  disarmed,  and  soon  we 
heard  feux  de  peloton,  and  then  guns  from  the  Croix 
Rousse.  I  hurried  off  to  fetch  mama,  who  was  with 
Mariette,  and  brought  her  home  in  great  alarm.  From 
eleven  to  three  the  guns  in  the  Croix  Rousse  thundered 


FUSILLADES,  181 


incessantly  against  the  barricades,  then  there  came  a 
pause  of  about  three  quarters  of  an  hour.  We  heard 
nothing,  the  soldiers  were  in  possession  of  the  barri 
cades,  the  bridges  occupied  by  guns,  and  all  com 
munication  between  the  two  sides  of  the  river 
suspended.  All  of  a  sudden  the  fusillade  began 
again,  extended  down  the  quays,  and  came  so  near 
to  us  that  a  woman  was  wounded  in  her  own  house, 
Rue  des  Bouchers,  No.  18.  [It  was  No.  n  that  the 
Flandrins  inhabited.]  Just  then  a  ball  struck  our 
house  as  I  was  double-locking  the  outer  gate.  The 
firing  went  on  till  about  half-past  eight,  and  then 
gradually  died  away.  It  had  hardly  stopped  when 
lightning  and  thunder  began,  and  it  seemed  as 
though  God's  Voice  were  denouncing  the  horrors  of 
the  day.  But,  alas  !  this  people  seems  deaf  to  all 
lessons  !  The  day  before  all  sorts  of  false  intelligence 
was  made  up  and  circulated  in  order  to  bring  about 
strife — the  people  know  that.  Again  during  the  fight 
ing  the  leaders  set  about  other  reports  just  as  false, 
and  they  know  that  too.  Yet  nothing  will  open  their 
eyes,  and  they  go  on  with  the  same  stupid  idiotic  faith 
in  their  deceivers.  Aux  armes  /  that  is  for  ever  their 
first  and  only  cry,  as  if  our  institutions  and  liberties 
did  not  supply  any  other  means  of  expressing  our 
wants  !  The  truth  is,  these  gentlemen  want  to  subject 
others  and  not  to  be  subject  themselves. 


1 82  MADAME  FLANDRIN. 

"  General  Gemeau,  who  commanded  operations, 
acted  with  admirable  decision.  Everything  was  fore 
seen,  arranged,  and  executed  as  rapidly  as  possible. 
But  for  that  the  evil  might  have  reached  a  most 
alarming  extent,  and  the  country  owes  a  great  deal  to 
men  who  dare  to  compromise  and  sacrifice  themselves 
for  it  thus.  A  subscription  is  being  raised  for  the 
wounded  soldiers  and  for  the  families  of  those  who 
were  killed.  I  have  just  made  my  contribution; 
surely  it  is  but  fair  that  we  should  show  our  gratitude 
to  our  defenders  when  other  people  are  so  ready  to 
spend  money  in  seducing  and  corrupting." 

Madame  Flandrin  was,  not  unnaturally,  greatly 
shaken  by  the  terror  of  this  time,  when  shells  were 
flying  about  her  house,  and  dead  and  wounded  carried 
beneath  her  windows;  and  at  eighty  (as  she  then 
was)  such  an  alarm  brought  on  serious  illness,  so  that, 
in  spite  of  her  wonderful  vigour  and  energy,  great 
fears  were  entertained  for  her  life.  However,  the 
danger  passed  away,  and  the  venerable  mother  lived 
to  enjoy  the  unfailing  affection  and  care  of  her  sons 
until  February  1858,  when  she  died,  at  the  age  of 
eighty-nine.  When  able  to  leave  his  mother  without 
anxiety,  Flandrin,  though  still  very  far  from  well,  and 
often  suffering  acutely  from  rheumatism,  which  his  long 
hours  of  work,  often  spent  in  cramped  positions  and 
in  cold  damp  localities,  tended  too  much  to  confirm, 


SAINT  VINCENT  DE  PAUL.  183 

went  back  to  Paris,  and  begun  his  work  in  the  Church 
of  Saint  Vincent  de  Paul.  In  September  1849  he  speaks 
of  being  comparatively  free  from  pain  for  a  few  days 
together  as  of  an  unwonted  thing.  Flandrin's  paint 
ings  in  this  church  are  considered  by  many  as  his 
finest  work.  Certainly  no  one  will  dispute  the  exceed 
ing  beauty  and  dignity  of  many  of  the  figures  which 
form  the  long  processions  on  either  side  the  nave ;  on 
the  one  Apostles,  martyrs,  doctors,  bishops,  and  con 
fessors  ;  on  the  other  virgin  martyrs,  holy  women, 
penitents,  and  saintly  household  groups, — "pictorial 
litanies,"  as  they  have  been  graphically  called.  Those 
who  delight  to  visit  Saint  Vincent  de  Paul,  and  gaze 
upon  that  wondrous  group  of  imaged  saints,  will  be 
interested  in  a  little  anecdote  connected  with  the 
broad  terrace  which  they  will  remember  at  the  top  of 
the  flight  of  steps  leading  up  to  the  west  door,  and 
which  is  specially  characteristic  of  the  master  whose 
hand  has  decorated  it.  One  September  evening  he 
had  taken  his  little  son  there  with  him  after  dinner, 
and  standing  on  the  top  of  the  broad  steps,  "  I  gazed 
in  wondering  admiration  at  the  sky,  one  side  of  which 
still  was  bright  with  the  glowing  tints  of  the  setting 
sun,  while  on  the  other  the  moon's  bright  orb 
rose  silently.  Auguste  tried  to  count  the  stars.  I 
talked  to  him  about  our  Father  in  Heaven,  and  the 
child  knelt  down  upon  the  stones,  and  leaning  against 


1 84  AUGUSTE  THE  SECOND. 

the  door  with  folded  hands,  began  to  pray  for  all  of 
us."  The  training  of  this  boy  may  be  indicated  by 
this,  as  well  as  by  his  father's  thanks,  five  years  later, 
to  M.  Ingres,  on  the  occasion  of  his  giving  Auguste  a 
Homer  in  that  original  Greek  which  Flandrin  himself 
had  so  often  longed  to  command ;  as  also  by  a  few 
brief  lines  addressed  to  the  boy  himself  on  his  first 
going  to  school  : — 

"  Oct.  6,  1858. 

"My  dear  Auguste, — My  dearest  child,  whenever 
you  feel  unhappy  or  dispirited,  or  if  you  should  unfor 
tunately  be  tempted  by  any  bad  example,  in  order  to 
gain  courage  or  avoid  wrongdoing,  think  of  God,  Who 
has  been  so  good  to  you  hitherto;  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  who  watches  over  you ;  of  your  dear  loving 
mother ;  and  of  your  father,  whose  happiness  depends 
on  your  good  conduct  and  well-doing.  In  short,  love 
us  as  we  love  you." 

Meanwhile  the  frescoes  in  Saint  Vincent  de  Paul 
were  progressing.  Flandrin  announces  M.  Ingres' 
inspection  of  them,  and  his  approval,  with  as  much 
satisfaction  and  modesty  as  in  his  earliest  student 
days;  and  a  little  later  he  reports  a  visit  from  M. 
Berger,  then  Prefet  de  la  Seine,  who,  after  great 
admiration,  inquired  how  long  Flandrin  would  be 
occupied  in  this  work,  and,  hearing  that  two  years 


AVIGNON.  185 


more  were  probably  necessary,  answered  that  in  that 
case  he  would  be  ready  quite  at  the  right  time 
for  Saint  Germain  des  Pres,  which  was  destined  for 
him  to  decorate.  Flandrin  tells  his  good  prospects, 
laughing  about  his  own  "  bonheur  insolant"  with  a  half 
hesitation  to  his  brother  Paul,  whose  success  he 
would  fain  have  seen  equal  to  his  own.  He  never 
seemed  eager  about  acquiring  honours  or  praise, 
though  eager  enough  about  the  success  of  his  work. 
Thus  he  neither  expresses  great  disappointment  at  his 
failure  on  two  occasions  (in  1849  an(l  I^5I)  to  ^e 
elected  a  member  of  the  Academic,  nor  great  exulta 
tion  when,  in  1853,  he  became  a  successful  candidate 
for  this  dignity. 

In  the  autumn  (1851)  some  rest  became  absolutely 
necessary,  and  Flandrin  went  to  the  South  of  France 
with  his  wife  and  children.  He  writes  from  Avignon 
to  his  brother  :  "  I  have  just  been  to  Notre  Dame. 
From  the  high  terrace  in  front  of  the  church  there 
was  a  most  glorious  view ;  the  sun  was  just  sinking,  the 
Rhine  and  the  plain  in  shadow,  but  the  Ventaux 
and  the  chain  of  Alps  lit  up  with  its  last  bright  rays. 
Glorious !  glorious  !  and  then  that  ancient  church, 
with  its  grand  images  in  front.  It  was  open,  and  I 
went  in  and  said  a  little  prayer  for  you  and  for  us." 

Tidings  of  the  death  of  the  Flandrins'  first  master, 
Legendre  Heral,  reached  him  at  Marseilles ;  and  after 


1 86  FRESH  HO  NO  URS, 

some  kindly  and  religious  expression  of  feeling,  and 
allusions  to  their  education  in  art,  Flandrin  goes  on  to 
bid  Paul  "  always  strive  to  get  at  the  poetical  meaning 
of  nature,  to  find  the  most  beautiful  and  most  true 
side  of  everything,  inasmuch  as  that  it  is  which  is 
most  closely  bound  to  things  eternal,  which  is,  in 
short,  the  moral  sense  that  unites  man  to  God." 

In  1852  Flandrin  had  the  great  delight  of  seeing 
his  brother  receive  the  Cross  of  the  Legion  of  Honour, 
which,  as  he  says,  brightened  up  his  own  marvellously. 
A  year  later  he  himself  received  the  higher  dignity  of 
"  Officier  de  1'Ordre  de  la  Legion  d'Honneur,"  and  in 
1854  he  was  appointed  to  a  Professorship  in  the 
£cole  des  Beaux  Arts.  His  strength  seems  often  to 
have  failed  amid  the  pressure  of  work,  at  home  and 
abroad,  for  he  painted  a  good  many  portraits  during 
the  time  that  his  great  frescoes  were  in  hand,  the 
demands  upon  his  purse  being  considerable ;  and  he 
says  to  his  brother  that  his  labour  was  as  necessary  as 
the  first  day  he  set  to  work,  although  he  felt  that  he 
no  longer  could  work  as  he  had  done,  but  that  every 
thing  became  a  toil.  His  constant  aim  to  preserve  a 
quiet  mind  amid  labour,  anxiety,  or  popularity  is  very 
striking.  "  //  ne  faut  pas  se  troubler?  he  says,  "  if 
only  I  could  practise  that  admirable  precept."  An 
occasional  trip  to  the  sea,  En,  Tre'port,  or  Havre, 
revived  him,  and  his  keen  appreciation  of  all  natural 


AN  UNWILLING  JUDGE.  187 

beauty,  sea,  sky,  sunset,  or  moonlight,  generally  brings 
back  some  remembrances  of  that  artist's  paradise,  his 
beloved  Rome.  The  work  in  Saint  Vincent  de  Paul 
was  finished  at  last,  in  1854,  and  the  following  year 
Flandrin  engaged  in  another  considerable  undertaking 
of  the  same  kind  at  Lyons.  Before  going  there  to 
decorate  the  church  of  Ainay,  he  had  to  take  part  as 
one  of  the  judges  in  that  redoubtable  Exhibition  field 
wherein  he  had  formerly  suffered  so  much.  His 
vivid  recollection  of  his  own  early  days  made  the 
office  a  painful  one.  He  writes  to  his  mother  :— 

"  PARIS,  April  1855. 

"  I  have  been  stupid  enough  to  be  rather  ill  again. 
All  the  plaster  was  new  in  the  Salles  d'Exposition 
where  we  held  our  jury  of  decision,  the  rain  and  snow 
came  in ;  in  short,  I  caught  cold,  and  was  obliged  to 
take  to  my  bed.  .  .  .  All  this  jury  business  does  not 
please  me  at  all.  One  must  reject  people  who  believe 
in  their  own  talent,  and  bestow  maledictions  on  you 
for  the  vexations  inflicted  on  them,  just  as  they  may 
be.  Of  course  here  and  there  one  or  two  people 
there  may  be  who  are  dealt  with  severely,  and  made 
to  grieve  unjustly,  but  it  is  almost  impossible  that  it 
should  be  otherwise.  Still  it  does  not  the  less  grieve 
your  son,  who  you  know  does  not  like  much  better 
than  his  dear  mother  to  see  any  one  distressed, 


1 88  A  IN  AY. 


especially  humble  folk.     Altogether  I  shall  not  be  at 
all  sorry  when  I  can  return  to  my  own  business." 

In  July  of  that  year  (1855)  Flandrin  took  up  his 
quarters  at  Lyons  in  order  to  paint  the  Church  of 
Ainay.  He  found  the  Cure  ready  to  trust  him 
thoroughly,  and  the  first  measure  taken  was  to  get 
an  order  from  that  gentleman  to  have  all  his  scaffold 
ing  taken  down  and  put  up  anew,  as  it  had  been  pre 
pared  so  as  to  make  painting  impossible !  There 
were  other  drawbacks  when  he  began  to  paint ;  the 
walls  were  badly  prepared,  and  so  wet  that  the  first 
outlines  had  to  be  drawn  three  times  ;  then  a  platform 
on  the  scaffolding  gave  way,  and  Flandrin  had  a  fall, 
not  from  any  important  height,  but  enough  to  sprain 
both  his  feet  and  cause  him  to  lose  several  days. 
The  church  was  dark,  the  lights  inconvenient,  and 
July  though  it  was,  several  days  were  so  gloomy,  that 
he  said  a  candle  would  have  been  acceptable !  and 
the  curves  of  the  rounded  parts  of  the  building,  which 
necessarily  altered  the  outlines  of  his  figures,  were 
troublesome.  Another  trouble  to  which  Flandrin 
was  sensitive,  was  that  every  one  in  the  church  could 
see  what  was  going  on,  and,  as  he  says,  criticism  set 
to  work  as  soon  as  there  were  four  strokes  drawn ! 
Flandrin  declared  to  his  brother  that  if  he  had  known 
all  the  difficulties  beforehand  which  were  to  beset 


NA  VE  OF  ST.   GERMAIN  DES  PRES. 


him,  he  would  never  have  undertaken  the  work, 
am  ruining  my  sight,  and  take  what  trouble  I  may,  I 
believe  this  work  will  never  count  as  worth  much  !" 
This  however  was  an  unnecessarily  gloomy  view  of 
the  matter,  and  there  were  many  who,  like  the  Bishop 
of  Nimes  (whose  opinion  and  criticism  Flandrin  in 
vited),  saw  a  grand  poem  written  on  the  three  apses 
(if  it  be  correct  so  to  call  the  terminal  absides  of  the 
aisles)  of  Ainay  Church.  Behind  the  high  Altar  is  a 
grand  figure  of  Our  Lord  blessing  the  world,  with  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  Saints  Blandina  and  Clotilde,  the 
Archangel  S.  Michael,  Saint  Pothinus,  the  Apostle  of 
Lyons,  and  S.  Martin.  In  the  smaller  right  hand 
apse  is  Saint  Benedict  seated  in  his  Abbot's  chair, 
with  two  monks  at  his  feet  dedicating  the  Abbey 
of  Ainay  to  his  Rule,  and  on  the  other  side  Saint 
Badulph. 

The  following  year  Flandrin  returned  to  Saint 
Germain  des  Pres,  where  he  was  commissioned  to 
paint  the  nave,  that  is  the  intervals  between  the 
windows,  containing  forty  figures,  and  eighteen  groups 
in  the  spaces  between  the  arcades  and  windows.  The 
former  represent  the  principal  types  and  promises  of 
Holy  Scripture  from  Adam  and  Eve  to  Zacharias,  from 
Noah  to  Saint  John  Baptist,  while  the  lower  groups 
consist  of  prophecies  from  the  Old  and  fulfilments 
from  the  New  Testaments.  Thus,  Balaam  prophesy- 


190  UNFINISHED  WORK. 

ing  the  Star  which  should  arise  in  Judah  is  beside  the 
adoration  of  the  Magi ;  Joseph  sold  by  his  brethren 
by  the  Betrayal;  the  Tower  of  Babel  beside  the  Mission 
of  Pentecost,  and  so  on.  If  the  writer  may  be  permitted 
here  to  hazard  an  opinion  as  to  the  merits  of  Flan- 
drin's  paintings,  one  is  tempted  to  say,  that  among 
these  groups  his  finest  works  are  to  be  found ;  the 
dignity,  poetry,  and  devotional  feeling  of  many  of 
those  groups  are  marvellous.  Perhaps  Flandrin  him 
self  enj  oyed  this  more  than  any  other  of  his  works.  He 
had  completed  the  nave,  and  was  occupied  in  prepar 
ing  to  paint  the  transept  (or  arm  of  the  cross  in  which 
the  church  is  built),  when  death  closed  his  earthly 
labours  in  God's  service.  When  he  left  Paris  in  1864 
Flandrin  foresaw  that  he  should  not  live  to  complete 
the  work.  "Le  bon  Dieu  ne  veut  pas  que  je  finisse 
sa  maison,"  he  said,  with  a  touching  smile  of  resigna 
tion,  conscious  of  the  weakness  to  which  illness  had 
reduced  him. 

Always  reticent  and  free  from  the  self-consciousness 
which  leads  us  to  dwell  largely  on  our  own  doings, 
Flandrin  writes  but  little  of  this  his  favourite  work ; 
the  few  times  he  alludes  to  it  in  his  letters  are  very 
characteristic,  as  when  he  writes  to  his  landscape 
painter  brother  Paul  (while  painting  Adam  and  Eve  in 
Paradise,  and  Moses  before  the  burning  bush),  "  I  am 
working  at  life-size  landscape  myself,  and  as  the  best 


ARLES.  191 


way  out  of  my  difficulty,  I  have  a  mind  to  go  and  see 
if  your  concierge  will  let  me  make  one  or  two  studies 
in  your  atelier;"  and  in  another  letter  to  M.  Laurens, 
he  says  :  "  I  am  working  at  the  nave  of  Saint  Germain 
des  Pre's — just  at  this  moment  on  the  subject  of  God 
rebuking  Adam  and  Eve  after  their  fall ;  is  it  not 
enough  to  make  one  tremble?" 

His  failing  health  involved  many  absences  and 
attempts  at  gaining  strength.  In  September  1859 
Hippolyte  describes  to  Paul  a  journey  just  ended  : — 

"  At  Aries,  we  went  to  the  Hotel  du  Forum — pah  ! 
what  filth  !  The  town  was  sweltering  under  a  sirocco, 
the  very  stones  trickled,  the  sky  lowered  heavily,  but 
all  the  same  how  I  enjoyed  re-visiting  Saint  Trophime 
and  the  Cloister,  the  Theatre  and  Arena.  And  all 
those  beautiful  and  interesting  things  in  the  Muse'e  ! 
The  head  of  Diana  is  a  marvel,  the  Silenus,  the  Four 
dancers,  the  young  Roman,  are  all  worth  hearty  study, 
and  though  I  saw  them  too  hastily,  they  have  left  very 
delightful  recollections  behind.  In  spite  of  the  rail 
road  Aries  is  Aries  yet ;  the  women  keep  their  beauty 
and  their  costume,  and  the  Southern  flavour  is  strong 
and  entire.  At  Tarascon,  Avignon,  and  Orange, 
through  which  we  merely  passed,  I  devoured  regret 
fully  everything  with  my  eyes  !  Le  Ventaux  was 
cloud-capped.  Then  came  Montelimart,  Valence, 
Saint  Vallier  :  the  South  is  slipping  from  us,  yet  at 


192  BLOIS. 


Vienne,  and  still  more  at  Lyons,  we  found  a  sky  which 
somewhat  recalled  it.  We  decided  on  sleeping  at  the 
Perrache  station,  and  the  next  day,  with  pleasant 
though  somewhat  changeable  weather,  we  went  from 
Lyons  to  Paris.  Less  and  less  of  the  beloved  South, 
but  nature  always  affords  food  for  admiration,  causes 
for  praising  God  and  thanking  Him.  We  came  back 
to  the  Forest  of  Fontainebleau,  etc.,  in  the  light  of 
one  of  the  finest  sunsets  I  have  ever  been  given  to 
behold.  Paris  was  quite  dark,  the  macadam  still  wet 
with  yesterday's  rain.  Here  is  our  own  dear  street ; 
we  got  out  of  the  carriage,  and  you  can  fancy  our 
delight  in  hearing  our  poor  little  Paul1  shouting  our 
names  with  all  his  might.  Next  day  I  had  to  see  to 
a  heap  of  letters  and  papers.  I  hurried  off  to  the 
Ecole  to  see  the  pictures  in  competition.  .  .  .  My 
day  was  so  full  I  could  not  write  sooner." 

"BLOIS,  Aug.  31,  1860. 

"  My  dear  Paul, — It  has  rained,  it  does  rain,  it  will 
rain  !  You  will  remember  we  had  three  tolerable  days  ; 
and  so  we  packed  up,  but  meanwhile  the  weather 
lowered,  and  when  the  cab  came  to  take  us  to  the  rail 
road,  there  was  no  room  for  doubt;  it  rained  hard  enough 
to  appal  people  who  have  not  been  case-hardened  by 
the  last  eight  months'  regime.  All  the  same  we  set 
1  Hippolyte  Flandrin's  third  child. 


THE  CHATEAU.  193 


out,  took  our  tickets  and  places,  and  started.  Through 
the  rain  we  made  out  Etampes,  the  plains  of  La  Beauce, 
Orleans,  Beaugency,  and  at  last  Blois.  Forty-four 
lieues  through  this  torrent  of  rain  and  a  driving  wind. 
Then  came  a  short  respite.  We  went  into  an  intensely 
picturesque  town,  guarded  by  its  fine  castle.  After 
taking  possession  of  rooms  in  the  hotel,  we  armed 
ourselves  with  umbrellas,  and  headed  by  Paul,  we  went 
all  about  that  great  monument,  penetrated  within, 
saw  it  from  top  to  bottom,  and  admired  inside  and 
out  alike.  What  a  blessing  that  the  restoration  has 
been  intrusted  to  M.  Dauban,  to  whom  we  owe,  not 
a  mere  preservation,  but  the  very  new  birth  of  a 
chef-d'oeuvre  of  originality  and  beauty.  What  poor 
wretched  artists  we  are  in  comparison  to  such  as 
those  !  On  leaving  the  Chateau,  we  climbed  to  the 
heights  in  order  to  see  the  Loire,  but  the  wind  was 
violent,  the  clouds  heavy  and  low,  and  we  were  soon 
driven  back  to  the  picturesque  old  streets,  full  of 
interesting  old  houses.  We  went  to  the  churches,  and 
at  last  came  in  to  rest  and  dine— raining  still.  In  the 
evening  we  went  with  umbrellas  to  the  fair  on  the 
Quays.  When  we  went  to  bed  the  clouds  were 
dispersing,  and  the  moon  bright,  but  this  morning  the 
rain  is  coming  down  steadily  again,  with  a  pretence  of 
innocent  good  faith  which  is  most  irritating;  it  looks 
as  if  it  would  never  leave  off !  Nevertheless  we  have 

N 


194  A  LA  MODE. 


ordered   a  carriage  to  go  and  see   Chambord,  four 
lieues  distant " 

Some  idea  of  the  way  in  which  work  was  crowded 
upon  Flandrin, — the  successful  artist  as  he  had  become, 
— may  be  gathered  from  a  letter  to  M.'Lacuria,  dated 

"PARIS,  Jan.  25,  1861. 

"  .  .  .  .  My  life  becomes  more  and  more  harass 
ing.  In  addition  to  the  old  tasks  which  more  than 
filled  it,  I  am  now  a  la  mode  !  As  I  told  you  before, 
the  success — absurd,  because  it  was  beyond  bounds — 
of  two  poor  portraits1  has  brought  about  this  glut  of 
applications.  I  have  refused  at  least  one  hundred  and 
fifty  since  the  last  Exhibition,  but  there  are  certain 
princes,  ministers,  etc.,  who  demand,  or  command, 
with  a  persistence  which  drives  me  to  despair,  and  to 
whom  I  submit  with  so  bad  a  grace,  that  I  am  visibly 
dwindling  away.  C'est  fini,  I  have  ceased  to  be  a 
painter !  Farewell  to  study,  and  to  that  delightful 
hope  of  improvement  which  kindles  all  one's  vigour 
and  strength.  This  sort  of  good  fortune  crushes  me, 
and  I  wish  I  knew  how  to  get  free  from  it,  of  which  I 
have  no  hope  !  And  yet,  if  even  that  were  all !  .  .  ." 

1  One  of  these  was  a  portrait  of  Mademoiselle  Maison,  now 
Madame  la  Baronne  de  Mackau,  which,  on  being  exhibited  in 
1859,  at  once  obtained  the  name  of  " la  jeune fille  a  I'aillet." 


ALLEY ARD.  19$ 


Repeated  failures  of  health,  over-work,  and  a 
journey  to  Allevard  les  Bains,  seem  to  have  been  the 
history  of  that  year.  Flandrin  writes,  August  1 5th,  to  his 
brother  Paul,  who,  by  the  way,  was  married  before 
this : — "  ....  Monday  was  the  hottest  day  I  ever 
knew  in  Paris ;  when  our  packing  was  done  we  were 
exhausted,  and  I  felt  it  was  very  imprudent  to  start 

in  such  a  torrid  heat However,  we  set  off  at 

seven  in  the  evening,  and  were  fortunate  enough  to 
have  our  compartment  to  ourselves,  and  whenever 
any  one  was  likely  to  get  in,  we  all  six  poked  our  heads 
out  so  as  to  keep  off  intruders.  In  about  two  hours' 
time  we  said  our  prayers  as  though  at  home,  and  little 
Paul  slept  till  four  o'clock,  when  the  sun  roused  him 
up.  Near  Chalons  the  sky  brightened,  the  stars 
vanished,  and  soon  the  Saone  glittered  amid  the  sweet 

plains  round  Magon We  came  to  the  beautiful 

valley  you  remember  so  well All  my  dear  old 

childish  memories  seized  upon  me.  At  Culoz  we 
took  the  Victor  Emanuel  line,  crossing  the  Rhone, 
coasting  the  Lac  de  Bourget,  and  stopping  at  Aix  and 
Chambe'ry.  At  Montmelian  we  left  the  railroad.  It 
was  eleven  o'clock,  horribly  hot,  and  very  tiring ;  we 
were  broiled  and  stifled,  as  you  and  I  were  sometimes 
of  old  in  Italy." 

Flandrin  rejoiced  in  the  beauty  of  the  scenery 
around,  and  would  fain  have  indulged  in  his  brother's 


196  MEMORIES. 


department  of  landscape  painting,  but  his  eyes  were 
suffering,  and  he  had  to  give  them  rest.  He  had 
hoped  to  go  on  to  his  "  dear  South,"  but  the  Concours 
de  Rome  was  coming  on,  and  he  felt  bound  to  assist 
at  it.  Stopping  at  Lyons  on  their  way  back  to  Paris, 
Flandrin  wrote  that  the  pleasure  he  had  expected  to 
find  in  returning  there  was  destroyed  by  his  bad 
health.  "  These  three  days  I  have  been  unable  to  see 
either  people  or  things.  The  first  evening  of  our 
arrival  I  went  at  nine  o'clock  with  Auguste  and  Cecile, 
and  gazed  at  our  dearest  mother's  windows,  and  as  I 
was  speaking  with  emotion  of  her  dear  memory,  I  felt 
a  tear  fall  on  my  hand,  and  Ce'cile  was  crying  quietly. 
These  tears  of  my  children  were  very  soothing  to  me 
I  must  confess." 

Among  the  portraits  Flandrin  was  called  upon  to 
paint  in  his  heyday  of  popularity  was  that  of  the 
Emperor  Napoleon  III.  (exhibited  1863,  and  after 
wards  placed  in  the  Luxembourg).  He  alludes  to 
it  in  a  letter  to  M.  Laurens,  dated 

"PARIS,  Dec.  10,  1861. 

"  I  have  been  long  answering  you,  but  I  have  been 
under  tremendous  fire — finishing  my  paintings  in 
Saint  Germain,  or  rather  preparing  to  uncover  what 
is  finished,  for  there  is  a  lot  still  to  compose  and 
execute.  About  a  fortnight  since  the  scaffolding  was 
removed,  and  I  saw  the  ensemble  for  the  first  time. 


COMP1&GNE.  197 


Then  I  went  to  spend  a  week  at  Compiegne.  Can 
you  fancy  me  in  shorts,  with  a  crush  hat  under  my 
arm  ?  Indeed,  dear  friend,  I  was  not  at  my  ease ! 
Nevertheless,  their  Majesties,  really  courteous,  treated 
their  guests  most  kindly,  and  took  pains  to  provide  for 
their  pleasure.  We  had  chasse  a  tir,  a  course,  and 
cur  fa — balls,  plays,  etc.,  but  all  that  is  not  worth  the 
good  daily  bread  of  work,  and  one's  own  free  studio 
and  fireside !  Still  this  visit  will  not  have  been 
unprofitable  with  a  view  to  my  portrait  of  the 
Emperor,  and  I  know  my  sitter  much  better  now  than 
before." 

The  run  upon  Flandrin's  portraits  continued.  He 
writes  to  M.  Lacuria  from  Auteuil : — 

"Jttne  29,  1862. — I  am  not  delivered  from  portrait- 
painting,  but  I  am  a  little  less  beset,  and  I  profit  by 
it  to  return  to  that  which  ought  to  engross  me  entirely, 
and  which,  between  ourselves,  is  much  less  weari 
some  to  me Health  permitting,  we  are  making 

an  attempt  to  get  to  Rome,  after  which  I  have  been 
sighing  these  twenty-four  years,  and  the  sight  of  which 
I  fancy  would  do  me  a  world  of  good  morally.  I  was 
imprudent  enough  to  talk  of  going  there  before  the 
children,  who  are  wild  to  go ;  and  if  anything  obliges 
us  to  defer  the  journey  till  another  year  there  will 


198  M.  INGRES  A  SENATOR. 


assuredly  be  great  lamentations.  As  to  myself,  I  feel 
that  I  have  already  postponed  it  too  long,  and  that  if  I 
could  have  indulged  in  such  enjoyment  some  years 
ago  it  would  have  greatly  added  to  my  powers  in  the 
work  at  Saint  Germain  des  Pres.  Well,  we  think,  and 
long  to  go,  but  all  the  while  we  know  that  a  thousand 
things  may  hinder  us. 

"  How  I  should  enjoy  going  over  the  Campana  col 
lection  with  you,  that  new  source  of  material  for  the 
study  of  art  from  the  very  earliest  time  to  our  own 
day !  This  altogether  unique  collection  ought  to  be 
most  carefully  preserved  apart  from  our  other  trea 
sures.  Unfortunately  the  Administration  des  Musees 
is  intent  on  doing  everything  in  its  power  to  absorb 
it  and  swell  the  collections  of  the  Louvre,  which 
ought  only  to  be  added  to  by  an  occasional  chef- 
d'oeuvre,  while  everything  of  inferior  merit  is  weeded 
out.  The  Emperor  has  heard  everything  that  can 
be  said  on  this  behalf  already ;  but  perhaps  he  will 
yield  from  want  of  localities  to  contain  the  treasures, 
or  money  to  create  fresh  ones. 

"You  have  doubtless  heard  of  M.  Ingres'  nomination 
to  the  dignity  of  Senator.  It  is  a  graceful  homage 
on  the  part  of  the  authorities,  for  which  I  feel  very 
grateful  to  the  Emperor,  with  whom  it  originated. 
When  M.  Ingres  went  to  thank  the  Minister,  M. 
Walewski,  he  replied,  '  I  rejoice  in  your  nomination 


COMMISSION  DES  BE  A  UX  ARTS.  199 

with  all  my  heart,  but  it  is  entirely  the  Emperor's  own 
doing.'  Moreover,  the  fact  was  announced  in  a 
charming  letter  to  Madame  Ingres  from  the  Empress, 
who  wished  to  be  the  first  with  her  congratulations, 
expressed  most  graciously  and  nobly.  There  is  a 
general  satisfaction  felt  at  this  act  of  justice  towards 
the  chief  of  our  French  school  of  art,  and  only  here 
and  there  some  slight  growling.  We  felt  that  this 
was  an  occasion  for  expressing  to  our  master  all  the 
gratitude  and  respect  we  feel  for  him,  his  example  and 
his  teaching ;  so  some  forty  of  his  pupils  and  old 
Roman  students  met  at  my  house,  and  we  voted  an 
address  to  him,  and  a  gold  medal  with  his  likeness, 
and  the  inscription  l  A  Jean-Auguste  Dominique 
Ingres,  Peintre  d'histoire,  Senateur,  ses  e'leves  et  ses 
admirateurs.'  The  address  is  at  the  Ecole  des  Beaux 
Arts,  where  all  who  will  are  signing  it.  I  know  your 
mind  so  well  that  I  was  sure  you  would  approve  of 
my  signing  it  for  you.  ...  I  agree  with  you,  in  order 
to  progress,  one  must  recollect  one's-self  and  obey  the 
dictate  of  one's  heart ;  I  believe  it  is  the  only  way  to 
reach  other  men's  hearts.  Simplicity  and  sincerity 
are  our  greatest  strength.  I  must  watch ;  I  sometimes 
feel  that  too  constant  work  in  one  groove  tends  to  a 
falling  off." 

Flandrin  had  been  for  some  time  on  the  Commis 
sion  des  Beaux  Arts  of  the  Prefecture  de  la  Seine,  and 


A  BUSY  TIME. 


he  was  also  on  a  Commission  lately  established  by  M. 
Walewski,  which,  among  other  duties,  was  expected 
to  advise  the  Minister  concerning  commissions,  pur 
chases,  and  rewards  to  be  given  to  artists. 

The  journey  to  Rome  did  not  take  place  that 
autumn.  Flandrin  writes  to  his  brother  from  Paris, 
Aug.  2,  1862:  "Never,  no,  never  have  I  been  so 
tormented,  distracted,  and  hustled  as  I  was  lately. 
Distribution  of  works  for  the  town  and  Ministere,  the 
Emperor's  fete,  when  all  the  nominations  for  the 
Legion  of  Honour  are  made,  elections  at  the  Institut, 
at  the  ficole  des  Beaux  Arts,  and  everywhere  else  ! 
It  is  enough  to  drive  one  wild  !  I  am  becoming  simply 
idiotic,  and  the  only  thing  which  surprises  me  is  that 
I  have  any  energy  left  to  try  to  work  !  but,  as  you  may 
imagine,  all  this  pleasant  engrossment  of  my  time,  with 
an  almost  entirely  failing  sight,  produces  a  woful 
result.  .  .  .  Without  wishing  to  murmur  against  the 
events  which  keep  us  apart,  dear  Paul,  I  do  grieve 
over  it.  What  a  blessing  it  would  be  if  we  could 
spend  a  summer  together,  meeting  to  talk  over  every 
thing  as  in  old  times,  under  some  kindly  tree  !  Un 
fortunately  it  does  not  seem  as  though  rest  were 
meant  to  be  had  in  this  world.  So  we  must  make 
ready  for  it  in  the  next  by  leading  good  lives,  and 
patiently  accepting  the  troubles  and  vexations  which 
abound  here." 


BELGIUM.  201 


An  interesting  letter  to  M.  Lacuria  gives  Flandrin's 
impression  of  some  of  the  great  works  of  art  in 
Belgium  : 

"October  19,  1862. —  ...  We  went  first  to  Lille 
to  see  the  magnificent  collection  of  Raffaele's  and 
Michael  Angelo's  drawings  in  the  Muse'e  there. 
RafTaele  shines  in  quantity  and  quality  of  his  incom 
parable  works — it  is  a  real  treasure.  Thence  we  went 
to  Bruges,  a  striking  town  in  the  character  of  its 
private  dwellings,  as  well  as  in  churches,  markets, 
Hotel  de  Ville,  etc.  Above  all,  there  is  a  public 
Palace,  which  to  my  eyes  is  a  very  type  of  such 
buildings  belonging  to  the  rich  and  powerful  com 
munities  of  the  fourteenth  century.  The  Hopital 
Saint  Jean  contains  many  deservedly  famous  and  pre 
cious  paintings  of  Hemling.  The  churches,  which  are 
fine  and  remarkable,  have  all  acquired  a  something 
peculiar  since  the  Spanish  dominion,  which  strikes 
one  a  good  deal.  Those  beautiful  large  Gothic  naves 
are  often  cut  in  two  by  jubes  [roodlofts  or  galleries] 
in  black  and  white  marble,  and  overladen  with 
ornaments,  pictures,  sculptures,  wood  carvings.  There 
are  some  very  beautiful  things  among  these,  which  we 
looked  at  again  and  again  with  the  most  intense 
interest,  but  unfortunately  I  had  not  time  to  draw. 

"We  were  very  much  struck  by  our  visit  to  the 
Beguinage — here  in  some  forty  humble  houses  (but  so 


202  VAN  EYCK. 


clean  as  to  defy  all  description  !)  a  number  of  women 
live  in  retreat,  bound  by  no  vows,  but  under  one  rule, 
and  wearing  a  fixed  dress.  The  houses  surround  an 
irregular  square  of  soft  turf,  shadowed  by  fine  trees. 
The  peace  and  calm  of  the  place  are  infectious,  and 
one  feels  as  if  an  asylum  there  from  time  to  time 
would  be  a  great  boon.  The  whole  town  is  curious 
and  interesting,  and  its  early  painters  have  supplied 
me  with  memories  by  which  I  would  fain  profit. 
What  wonderful  men  the  brothers  Van  Eyck  were  ! 

"  From  Bruges  we  went  to  Ghent,  which  as  a  town 
rather  disappointed  me ;  the  modern  element  has  so 
greatly  effaced  its  old  aspect.  Still  it  is  rich  in  many 
ways,  but  the  one  attraction  to  me  is  in  the  Cathe 
dral  of  Saint  Bavon, — Jan  Van  Eyck's  Triumph  of 
the  Lamb.  The  whole  arrangement  of  the  subject, 
the  light  and  colour  blend  into  perfect  poetry,  the 
effect  of  which  is  increased  as  you  penetrate  farther, 
and  study  the  character  and  moral  sense  of  all  the 
figures.  I  don't  think  I  ever  saw  such  a  combina 
tion  of  beauty.  We  went  back  to  this  picture  three 
times  in  one  day.  The  churches  in  Antwerp  are 
full  of  Rubens'  and  Van  Dyck's ;  some  of  the 
Rubens'  are  certainly  much  finer  than  any  that  we 
possess.  They  are  magnificent,  and  so  finished,  that 
while  looking  at  them  one  asks  no  more ;  but  turn  to 
the  early  pictures,  and  they  make  one  forget  all  this 


COLOGNE.  203 


magnificent  and  splendid  talent,  for  they  appeal 
directly  to  one's  heart,  and  leave  lasting  impressions 
there.  There  is  much  more  to  tell,  but  time  fails.  I 
must  only  say  that  we  went  on  to  Brussels,  Malines  (a 
charming  town),  Louvain,  Liege,  Aix  la  Chapelle, 
and  lastly  Cologne,  taking  Namur  on  our  return. 
There  are  many  beautiful  and  touching  objects  of 
interest  at  Cologne,  in  the  cathedral  and  in  the 
many  ancient  churches,  which  are  ossuaries  for 
thousands  of  martyrs.  Only  we  found  it  very  difficult 
to  communicate  with  the  inhabitants,  and  ought  to  be 
highly  proficient  by  this  time  in  the  art  of  pantomime, 
in  spite  of  which  we  often  were  forced  to  give  up 
all  hope  of  understanding  or  being  understood.  At 
last  we  returned  to  Paris,  which  seemed  horrid; 
indeed,  I  don't  know  any  place  where  the  houses  are 
so  ugly  and  without  form.  The  Rue  de  1'Abbaye, 
which  I  care  for  most  of  all,  received  us  quietly,  and 
we  heartily  thanked  our  good  God  for  having  given 
the  five  of  us  this  enjoyable  outing,  with  fine  weather 
and  no  ill-health." 

This  last  year  did  not  diminish  Flandrin's  occupa 
tion  or  responsibilities.  "  Days,  months,  fly  by,"  he 
writes  (St.  John's  Day,  1863),  "and  soon  a  year, 
which  has  been  all  but  lost  as  far  as  work  is  concerned, 
will  be  gone.  My  two  last  compositions  for  the  nave 
of  Saint  Germain  des  Pre's  are  not  yet  finished,  and 


204  IMPORTANCE  OF  FORM. 

yet  I  do  most  earnestly  desire  to  go  to  work  at  them 
again."  One  very  engrossing  duty  was  the  Jury  des 
recompenses,  to  which  Flandrin  always  devoted  his 
full  hearty  attention,  at  whatever  cost  to  his  own 
immediate  pursuits.  He  was  not  altogether  satisfied 
with  this  year's  Exhibition.  "  We  get  little  else  now," 
he  says  (June  1863),  writing  to  M.  Lacuria,  "but 
peinture  de  genre.  Among  that  class  of  works  we  find 
charming  things,  a  great  deal  of  talent  and  feeling, 
and  certain  landscapes  in  colouring  and  style  put  forth 
one  side  of  truth,  which  is  not  without  its  value,  but 
which  to  my  mind  is  only  secondary.  Form  is  a 
point  more  and  more  neglected,  and  yet  physiognomy, 
character,  the  moral  sense  of  things,  are  strictly  in  its 
domain.  Is  not  everything  grand  in  art  dependent  on 
good  drawing  ?  I  may  be  mistaken,  but  it  seems  to 
me  that  photography  has  inflicted  a  mortal  blow  on 
art.  Many  people,  with  its  aid,  and  industry,  can 
perform  things  otherwise  left  undone,  but  where  shall 
we  find  that  vigorous  drawing,  that  living  spirit  which 
we  admire  in  great  masters,  and  which  can  only  be 
the  result  of  constant  observation  and  study  of  nature  ? 
"  You  will  have  heard  of  the  Venuses,  by  Cabanel 
and  Baudry  !  Both  works  are  remarkable  for  different 
qualities;  only  why  do  not  such  clever  men  put  them 
selves  under  the  banner  of  ancient  art?  They  would 
acquire  more  power  to  avoid  seeking  those  endless 


PRUSSIAN  ORDER  OF  MERIT.  205 

refinements  and  insipid  prettinesses  which  may  win 
present  success,  but  which,  perhaps,  may  not  keep  it 
long." 

About  the  same  time  Flandrin  mentions  that  he 
had  just  received  the  Prussian  Order  of  Merit,  with  a 
letter  from  the  artist  Cornelius,  which  he  says  makes 
him  feel  quite  ashamed,  from  the  thought  that  so 
many  honours  have  been  showered  upon  him  as  com 
pared  to  many  of  his  brethren  in  art,  whose  greater 
merits  are  so  little  recognised.  Characteristically 
enough,  his  first  idea  seems  to  be  the  satisfaction  his 
old  master  would  derive  from  this  compliment,  and  the 
news  was  taken  to  M.  Ingres  as  an  offering  certain  to 
be  acceptable  for  his  fete-day. 

Illness  pressed  more  and  more  heavily  on  the 
painter;  he  felt  less  and  less  able  to  encounter  the 
endless  worries  and  anxieties  which  his  position,  public 
and  private,  involved;  and  in  the  autumn  of  1863  he 
resolved  to  leave  all  behind  and  carry  out  the  long- 
cherished  plan  of  a  winter  in  Italy,  where  he  hoped  to 
recruit  his  failing  bodily  strength,  and  to  get  some 
degree  of  mental  rest  and  refreshment;  determined,  as 
he  said,  "  to  do  nothing  but  do  homage  to  my  beloved 
Rome."  He  grieved  to  leave  his  work  at  Saint 
Germain  des  Pre's  unfinished,  but  though  saying  that 
"  God  would  not  have  him  finish  His  House,"  Flandrin 
looked  hopefully  at  that  time  to  restored  health  and 


206  FAREWELL  TO  FRANCE. 

renewed  energy  at  his  work.  But  in  fact  he  left  Paris, 
on  October  18,  1863,  never  to  return.  In  his  Journal 
he  dwells  upon  the  beautiful  but  somewhat  melancholy 
aspect  of  the  country  in  its  autumnal  hues,  adding 
that,  as  the  train  whirled  on,  memories  of  early  days 
at  Lyons  and  at  Rome  rose  up  vividly  in  his  mind, 
and  he  had  been  going  far  back  into  the  first  phase  of 
his  life.  The  travellers,  consisting  of  Flandrin,  his 
wife  and  three  children,  and  M.  Laurens,  paused  at 
Lyons,  and  there  his  last  act  in  his  native  land  was  to 
go  "la  haut"  as  he  always  described  the  cemetery 
where  his  father  and  mother  were  buried,  and  pray 
beside  their  graves.  Friendly  hands  had  decorated 
their  graves  with  fresh  flowers,  and  Flandrin  was 
deeply  touched  at  the  little  incident.  There  had 
been  many  changes  and  chances  since  the  days  when 
the  "  petits  Flandrin  "  used  to  pick  up  stray  lessons 
from  M.  Duclaux  how  to  draw  animals,  with  a  view  to 
their  intended  line  as  painters  of  battle-pieces.  M. 
Duclaux  was  still  living  at  Lyons,  and  Flandrin  tried 
to  see  him,  as  well  as  the  few  relations  still  dwelling 
there,  but  he  was  absent.  They  left  Lyons,  on  October 
20th,  for  Marseilles,  proceeding  again  thence  by  rail 
way  to  Nice.  Flandrin's  admiration  of  the  scenery 
is  ecstatic.  "  The  variety,  the  richness  of  outline,  of 
form  and  effect,  altogether  exhausted  my  powers  of 
expression — I  could  only  hold  up  my  hands  !  Indeed, 


MENTONE.  207 


the  journey  to  Nice  is  more  wondrous  than  I  can 
possibly  say.  If  I  were  a  landscape-painter,  I  think 
I  should  feed  upon  this  country  for  long. 

"On  the  24th  we  left  Nice  by  a  fine  road  which  winds 
among  the  mountains,  and  after  two  hours  and  a  half 
ascent,  we  reached  the  summit,  and  saw  the  sea  again,  as 
also  the  Alps  and  their  glaciers;  the  Gulf  of  Villafranca, 
and  its  guest  the  Montebello,  at  our  feet.  For  a  long 
time  we  kept  on  the  heights,  and  saw  Eza  lying  beneath 
us,  a  little  nest  of  Saracen  pirates,  perched  on  an  iso 
lated  rock.  Now  the  Saracens  are  replaced  by  Chris 
tians,  and  the  little  church'rises  gracefully  amid  the  poor 
village  which  stands  in  a  cleft  of  the  rock.  By  degrees 
we  descended — road  superb, — passed  Turbia,  an  an 
cient  Roman  station,  .  .  .  Monaco,  bright  and  smiling, 
in  the  bottom,  and  a  little  further  on,  Roccabrucca 
and  Mentone,  our  last  possession  on  the  Italian  side. 
We  reached  our  hotel  at  four  o'clock,  and  went  out 
directly  to  go  close  to  the  sea,  to  wet  our  feet  in  it  as  the 
waves  advanced ;  and  then  we  went  all  over  the  little 
town,  climbing  from  street  to  street,  from  terrace  to 
terrace,  up  to  the  three  churches  which,  grouped 
together,  crown  it.  The  cathedral  is  large  and  grand 
after  a  fashion,  but  what  taste  in  general !  Painting  is 
downright  abused,  for  you  see  houses  of  every  colour, 
yellow,  white,  pink,  green.  Just  opposite  our  hotel1  is 
1  Flandrin  must  have  stayed  at  the  Hotel  de  Londres. 


208  SAN  REMO. 


the  Hotel  de  Turin,  which  is  painted  ultramarine, 
with  green  shutters,  and  turned  up  with  yellow. 
Beyond  the  frontier,  in  Italia  proper,  nothing  is  more 
common  than  blue  houses,  pink  turrets,  striped 
fagades;  yet  all  the  while  this  brilliant  architecture, 
which  is  not  often  good,  presents  delicious  bits  of 
outline  and  proportion.  All  the  little  towns  have  a 
character  of  their  own,  and  a  special  grace.  At 
Mentone  I  was  struck  with  the  beauty  of  some  of  the 
women  and  children,  especially  with  their  gentle,  good 
expression.  On  Sunday  morning  we  went  to  Mass, 
and  then  started  again  with  our  vetturino.  A  little 
further  we  came  to  Ventimiglia,  a  pretty  little  fortified 
town,  crossing  the  road.  There  we  breakfasted  at 
La  Locanda  dTtalia,  and  I  tried  my  Italian  for  the 
first  time.  We  breakfasted  opposite  a  sort  of  chapel 
to  the  Re  galanf  uomo  and  Garibaldi.  From  Bordi- 
ghera  to  San  Remo — shore  covered  with  a  real  wood 
of  palm  trees.  The  streets  and  ensemble  of  San 
Remo  are  very  striking,  lofty  palaces  adorned  with 
porticos,  loggia,  terraces,  reminding  one  of  Spanish 
towns.  Being  Sunday,  the  people  were  all  out ;  we 
saw  lovely  women,  and  I  regret  most  heartily  not 
having  been  able  to  preserve  any  of  those  beautiful 
types.  So  again  at  Porto  Maurizio  and  Oneglia.  If 
I  could  but  draw  instead  of  writing  ! 

"October  26th. — Off  at  seven  o'clock.     Sea   calm, 


GENOA.  209 


dolphins  playing  on  the  surface,  as  though  saluting  the 
rising  sun.  By  degrees  the  mountains  grow  lower, 
and  there  are  more  villages  amid  the  boundless  forest 
of  olive  trees  which  shrouds  them  like  a  soft  curtain. 
At  Loano  (where  Massena  fought  the  Austrians  and 
Sardinians)  we  breakfasted.  A  large  lady,  with  a  huge 
crinoline,  assisted  by  her  daughter  and  a  cameriera  in 
crinolines  to  match,  showed  us  into  the  salon,  which 
was  neither  more  nor  less  than  a  shrine  to  Garibaldi. 
.....  Thence  to  the  salle-a-manger,  where  we  had 
a  rustic  but  tolerable  mealj  that  was  all  very  well, 
but  what  was  not  so  well  was  the  ridiculously  exorbi 
tant  bill." 

"  October  2^/1. — Left  Savona  at  eight  o'clock. 
Weather  and  country  both  beautiful.  But  the  olive 
trees  are  becoming  fewer  and  smaller — one  only  sees 
a  palm  tree  here  and  there,  and  the  caroubas  are 
replaced  by  ilex.  As  we  approached  Genoa  (seeing 
its  beautiful  clusters  and  striking  faro  from  a  great 
distance)  the  houses  became  more  red,  more  green, 
more  blue,  and  above  all  more  yellow,  and  were 
decorated  with  the  most  fantastic  architectural  inven 
tions,  the  most  comical  ornamentation.  My  little  Paul 
unconsciously  made  a  happy  criticism,  exclaiming, 
'  Oh,  papa,  look  at  all  these  card-houses  ! '  On  reach 
ing  the  Lanterne,  at  the  entry  of  the  port,  we  saw  the 
whole  of  Genoa,  and  I  can  well  understand  her  being 


210  PASS  OF  BRACCO. 

called  the  Superb.  The  height  of  her  houses  and 
palaces,  the  profusion  of  her  towers,  domes  and 
belfries,  her  bold  groups  of  buildings,  give  to  the 
whole  a  proud  look  of  wealth  very  suitable  to  the 
reputation  of  this  rival  to  Venice." 

They  lionized  Genoa,  much  as  everybody  does,  and 
started  again  for  Sestri  on  the  29th,  breakfasting  at 
the  little  solitary  inn  on  the  heights  midway,  so  familiar 
— with  its  glorious  view  and  vine-covered  trellises — to 
all  Mediterranean  travellers.  Flandrin's  enjoyment  of 
the  scenery  was  intense,  and  his  description  of  the 
colouring  of  the  Pass  of  Bracco  will  bring  the  scene 
vividly  to  many  a  memory.  "Olive  trees  are  re 
placed  by  ilex,  and  then  by  chesnuts,  and  at  last  the 
huge  mountain  sides  are  clothed  by  a  scanty  dim 
fleece — often  bare.  Above  Bracco,  at  the  top  of  the 
ascent,  which  took  three  hours,  we  found  bare  ground 
of  every  colour,  from  black  and  violet  to  sulphur 
tints,  separating  us  from  the  dark  rocks  which  hid 
their  summits  amid  the  clouds — a  very  embodiment  of 
chaos  and  desolation.  No  trace  of  man  beyond  the 
road,  except  when  from  one  of  the  steepest  points  a 
young  girl  came  running  down  through  the  fog  to  see 
us  pass,  and  then  stood  motionless,  gazing  and  smiling 
— a  lovely  picture  contrasting  with  the  wild  landscape." 

At  Borghetto  (where,  as  elsewhere,  they  encoun 
tered  a  perpetual  glorification  of  Garibaldi)  they  were 


P1SA—CAMPO  SANTO.  211 


stopped  by  the  old  grievance — floods  on  the  Magra. 
An  English  family  and  the  Princess  Orloff  shared  the 
Flandrins'  detention  of  two  days,  one  of  which  was 
All  Saints'  Day,  when  the  somewhat  rude  but  hearty 
services  of  the  little  village  church  touched  the 
painter  with  a  great  sense  of  reality  and  simplicity. 
From  Sarzana  to  Pisa  he  was  again  in  raptures  over 
the  scenery,  which,  he  says,  should  make  the  fortune 
of  a  landscape-painter.  Pisa  was  an  old  friend,  and 
renewed  his  former  impressions,  "with  its  tranquil 
streets,  vast  palaces  and  lovely  churches,  around 
which  the  grass  grows  freely."  He  took  his  wife  and 
children  to  see  the  town.  "  The  four  great  monuments 
appeared  at  once  all  golden  against  a  glorious  blue 
sky.  The  Leaning  Tower  is  as  disagreeable  to  me  as 
before.  I  don't  like  that  sort  of  curiosity.  After 
dwelling  upon  the  external  view  of  this  rare  combina 
tion  of  buildings,  we  went  to  the  Baptistry,  where 
the  interior  architecture  especially  struck  us  with  its 
grandeur  and  boldness,  and  withal  its  simplicity. 

"The  Campo  Santo,  which  I  remembered  as  one  of 
the  things  which  had  struck  me  most,  fully  confirmed 
my  former  impressions ;  the  simplicity  of  its  architec 
ture,  where  severity  and  elegance  are  so  blended, 
struck  me  fully  as  much  as  in  my  youth.  It  was  with  real 
emotion  that  I  entered  and  saw  the  ravages  time  has 
made  on  those  venerable  walls.  Some  treasures  are 


212  SIENNA, 


altogether  departed,  and  the  rest  are  fading  fast. 
Orcagna's  grand  subjects  are  treated  with  a  power  and 
pathos  such  as  they  deserve,  but  the  life  of  San 
Ranieri  is  much  damaged,  and  Benozzo  Gozzoli's 
great  work  is  fading.  Some  frescoes  are  still  tolerably 
perfect,  some  groups  worthy  of  Masaccio,  which  I 
would  fain  see  preserved." 

Flandrin  and  his  eldest  boy  went  over  to  Lucca, 
and  he  was  greatly  impressed  by  the  cathedral,  with 
its  exquisitely  rich  sculptured  porch,  and  with  the  two 
famous  Fra  Bartolommeos  in  San  Romano.  He  took 
a  regretful  farewell  of  the  Campo  Santo  before  leaving 
Pisa.  "  The  last  rays  of  the  setting  sun  still  lingered 
upon  it,  but  soon  they  passed  away,  and  we  had 
sorrowfully  to  say  goodbye.  Then  we  went  into  the 
cathedral,  where  nothing  could  be  distinguished  save 
the  great  masses,  still  more  imposing  in  the  shadow 
and  stillness.  That  too  we  had  to  leave.  Alas,  it  is 
passing  too  rapidly  over  such  glorious  things  ! " 

They  next  went  to  Sienna,  which  greatly  delighted 
Flandrin.  He  thought  the  Piazza  and  the  Palazzo 
almost  the  finest  things  he  had  seen.  His  admiration 
of  Nicola  Pisano  was  great.  "  What  grand  meaning 
this  master  gives  to  all  he  touches  !  I  had  him 
always  in  high  reverence,  but  I  must  confess  that  this 
reverence  increases  with  every  fresh  work  of  his  that  I 
see ;  they  satisfy  my  mind  entirely.  .  .  .  We  all  went 


ON  TO  ROME.  213 


together  to  see  the  Palazzo  del  Governo,  built  by 
Popes  Pius  II.  and  III.,  both  Piccolomini,  with  the 
delicious  loggia  adjoining,  which  is,  to  my  mind,  one 
of  the  most  important  among  the  glories  of  Sienna, 
as  is  the  Porta  Romana.  It  is  marvellous  how  the 
artists  of  that  period  knew  how  to  give  each  building 
its  individual  meaning.  This  gate,  according  as  it  is 
open  or  shut,  becomes  a  triumphal  arch  or  an 
invincible  defence.  It  faces  the  enemy  with  wondrous 
daring,  yet  not  without  a  pious  thought ;  for  the  little 
chapel  suspended  over  the  passage  sets  forth  a 
representation  of  Him  under  Whose  Protection  the 
town  reposes.  From  beneath  the  arch  of  this  strong 
yet  simple  building  we  looked  out  upon  an  enchant 
ing  landscape  lit  up  with  the  autumn  sun.  .  .  .  Truly 
Sienna  is  the  queen  of  towns." 

Flandrin  went  to  see  M.  Mussini,  Director  of  the 
Sienna  Academy,  who  showed  him  all  the  trea 
sures  it  possesses  of  old  masters,  and  at  last  they 
left  Sienna,  feeling  that  a  much  longer  stay  would 
have  been  enjoyable.  Thence  the  travellers  pro 
ceeded  by  Orvieto,  Bolsena,  Montefiascone  and 
Viterbo,  all  full  of  memories  of  past  times.  Flandrin 
remembered  saying  thirty  years  ago  to  Paul,  as  they 
coasted  the  lake,  that  it  was  beautiful  enough  for  the 
new  creation  fresh  from  God's  Hand  !  Coming  in 
sight  of  the  dome  of  Saint  Peter's,  all  the  party  got 


214  MEMORIES. 


out  of  the  carriage  to  do  it  homage,  and  as  they 
entered  the  Piazza  del  Popolo  Flandrin's  delight  and 
emotion  grew  overwhelming. 

Once  again  in  his  beloved  Rome  ;  whither,  indeed, 
he  had  come  to  die  !  But  as  yet  it  was  all  excitement 
and  delight.  Almost  as  soon  as  they  had  arrived  he 
hastened  to  his  old  haunts,  and  after  dining  at  Lepri's, 
"we  instinctively  took  the  Trinita  de'  Monti  steps, 
and,  following  the  Pincio,  now  dark  and  deserted,  I 
hastened  to  show  the  front  of  the  Villa  Medici  to  my 
wife  and  children.  Like  a  lover  gazing  upon  his 
lady's  windows,  I  gazed ;  I  would  fain  have  touched 
the  walls  within  which  I  had  been  so  happy ;  but  there 
were  people  about  the  door,  whom  I  supposed  to  be 
students,  and  after  a  moment's  contemplation,  we 
beat  our  retreat  by  the  Salita  and  the  Via  San 
Sebastiano."  Flandrin  wrote  enthusiastically  of  the 
same  event  to  his  brother  :  "  There  it  was  indeed 
— the  dear  dwelling — where  I,  where  we  were  so 
happy !  Hidden  among  the  ilexes,  I  dipped  my 
fingers  in  the  fountain  as  if  it  were  a  benitier,  and 

gazed I    could   almost   reproach    myself   for 

coming  here  without  you ;  our  mutual  love  makes  it 
almost  painful  to  have  any  enjoyment  apart.  But  as 
we  cannot  always  be  together,  we  must  thank  God 
for  the  pangs  which  prove  how  dearly  we  love  one 
another." 


ROME.  215 


The  weather  was  rainy,  but  while  his  wife  was 
occupied  in  settling  into  an  apartment  in  the  Piazza 
di  Spagna,  Flandrin  could  not  resist  taking  his  chil 
dren  to  some  of  the  most  striking  scenes  in  Rome; — 
St.  Peter's,  which  he  admired  even  more  than  of  old, 
saying  that  "there  is  a  majesty  and  supernatural 
power  about  it  not  to  be  found  in  kings'  palaces  ;" 
the  Forum  and  Coliseum,  amid  thunder  and  torrents 
of  rain,  whence  he  and  Auguste  returned  dripping 
like  fish  ;  the  Pantheon,  Raffaele's  tomb,  the  Loggia 
and  Stanze.  "  The  sight  of  these  masterpieces,  whose 
memory  is  as  deep  in  my  heart  as  my  head,  kindled 
all  my  enthusiasm ;  what  intense  delight  to  realise  all 
this  beauty  !  Oh,  dear  Paul,  why  are  you  not  here?" 
And  he  assures  M.  Ingres  that  the  "  intensity  of  their 
poetry  and  beauty  has  given  me  new  life." 

Flandrin  gave  himself  up  to  seeing  Rome  anew, 
and  showing  its  wonders  of  delight  to  his  wife  and 
children.  "  It  is  inexhaustible,"  he  writes.  "  How 
many  things  I  had  not  seen,  or  seen  imperfectly, 
which  indeed  I  should  doubtless  see  better  now  if 
I  knew  more.  But,  I  can  assure  you,  I  go  to  work 
with  a  good  will  which  is  very  enjoyable,  and  the 
delight  of  my  belongings  adds  to  mine.  Every  day 
we  make  some  excursion,  on  foot  or  driving,  and 
for  the  last  four  weeks  the  weather  has  been  fine, 
the  sun  brilliant,  almost  scorching ;  but,  on  the  other 


216  VILLA  MEDICI. 

hand,  in  the  shade  it  is  so  cold  that  I  dare  not  lay 
aside  my  cloak.  .  .  .  Except  these  troubles  (connected 
with  the  Academy),  which  give  me  sleepless  nights, 
and  so  are  weakening,  I  am  very  happy,  and  I  don't 
know  what  I  could  do  more  likely  to  set  me  up  again. 
I  am  at  Rome, — well  lodged,  in  full  sunshine,  the 
weather  perfect,  I  am  out  all  day  enjoying  the  scenes 
I  most  delight  in, — what  conditions  could  be  more 
favourable  for  recovering  my  health  ?  Yet,  unfortu 
nately,  to  my  great  grief,  I  feel  as  enervate  as  ever, 
arms  and  legs  broken  !  Anyhow  nobody  can  say  now 
that  it  is  caused  by  over-work,  for  the  last  two  months 
I  have  done  absolutely  nothing  but  eat,  drink,  and 
sleep,  and  enjoy  the  sunshine." 

His  Journal  betokens  the  energy  with  which  Flan- 
drin  revisited  every  point  of  interest — the  Catacombs, 
churches  innumerable,  where  his  devout  spirit  and  his 
artist's  taste  alike  found  rest ;  pictures,  statues,  exca 
vations — all  were  a  fresh  source  of  delight  to  him. 
The  Academia  calls  forth  his  enthusiasm  :  "  Every 
thing  there  is  so  beautiful  that  I  overflow  with  delight 
and  admiration,  the  palace  more  lovely  than  ever,  the 
laurels  greener — the  plain,  the  mountains  with  their 
crown  of  fresh  snow — the  whole  thing  together  makes 
me  cry  out  aloud  to  myself!  Then  the  bosco,  still 
more  beautiful ;  and  feeling  that  I  must  tell  it  all  to 
some  one,  I  hurried  home  to  make  -all  my  dear 


THE  PINCIO.  217 


ones  share  my  delight!"  He  dined  in  the  old  hall 
with  the  students,  "and  felt  like  a  student  again 
myself, — the  reception  given  me,  so  hearty  and 
affectionate,  touched  me  deeply." 


ft- 


"RoME,\£te<r.  4,  1863. 

"  My  dear  Paul, —  ...  I  have  been  to  the  Stanze 
to-day,  and,  for  the  first  time  since  my  arrival,  to  the 
Museo,  to  the  Transfiguration,  the  Coronation,  the 


Madonna  del  Foligno,  and  revelled  in  them.  I  pas 
tured  in  all  their  beauty,  greater,  fresher  than  ever.  I 
would  I  could  say  the  same  of  the  frescoes !  Alas, 
it  appears  to  me  that  some  of  the  Loggia  have  suf 
fered,  and  that  there  are  tokens  of  advancing  ruin 
in  the  Stanze,  which  make  me  tremble.  Who  could 
think  calmly  of  the  destruction  of  these  marvels, 
products  of  an  art,  a  man  and  a  period  all  alike  privi 
leged?  That  period  is  gone  for  ever,  nothing  like 
it  can  ever  reappear — taste  and  ideas  diverge  further 
from  it  daily,  and  create  a  wider  barrier  than  time 
itself.  But  I  must  not  run  on  thus.  Let  us  go  together 
to  the  Pincio.  This  afternoon,  about  four  o'clock, 
coming  from  S.  Peter's,  I  went  up  there.  The  weather 
was  dark  and  cold,  the  walks  deserted,  the  leaves 
falling  heavily,  and  even  at  Rome  it  is  winter  !  I 
stopped  and  gazed  with  feelings  which  I  cannot 
describe,  but  which  you  will  understand,  upon  the 


218  CATACOMBS. 


beauties  I  used  to  gaze  upon  ;  but  with  what  a  differ 
ence  !  Formerly  time  and  hope  were  before  me, 
and  now  they  are  both  left  behind.  Ah  !  there  is 
the  winter  again  !  Never  mind,  if  we  know  how 
to  accept  our  lot  wisely,  there  is  yet  happiness  in  store 
for  us ;  so  let  us  be  wise  ! 

"  In  a  dark  hour  like  that  the  green  of  the  laurels 
and  ilex  is  marvellous  ;  Mount  Soracte  seemed  bathed 
in  ultramarine,  and  behind  Monte  Mario  the  sky 
was  simply  golden.  You  can  understand  the  har 
mony  of  such  solemn  yet  rich  strains.  I  enjoy  such 
spectacles  immensely, — I  feel  and  love  it  all ;  but 
I  am  doing  nothing,  and  that  is  a  cause  of  incessant 
regret  to  me.  We  have  been  here  a  month,  and  we 
have  not  seen  one  quarter  of  what  we  came  to  see, 
yet  the  time  has  been  used  as  actively  as  we  could 
manage.  Is  our  whole  time  to  pass  like  this  ?  I  do 
not  like  to  think  so." 

The  account  in  Flandrin's  Journal  of  their  visit  to 
the  Catacombs  of  Saint  Calixtus  on  Saint  Cecilia's 
Day  is  interesting  : — 

"  After  Mass  at  the  Trinita,  all  the  family  off  to 
the  Catacombs.  Having  passed  by  the  Porta  San 
Sebastiano,  we  entered  the  Via  Appia,  then  an  inclo- 
sure  of  land,  through  which  we  were  guided  by  a  row 
of  box  and  flowers,  up  to  the  staircase,  which  was 


ST.  CECILIA'S  DAY.  219 

hung  and  lighted.  The  tombs  in  the  walls  begin  at 
once  as  in  S.  Agnes,  but  here  the  quality  of  tufo 
gives  a  different  appearance ;  the  galleries  are  larger, 
loftier,  and  have  a  more  architectural  form.  The 
effect  of  these  fine  lines,  lit  up  with  lamps  here  and 
there,  is  very  striking.  Not  far  from  the  entrance 
we  came  to  a  chamber  or  chapel  in  which  is  the  niche 
where  Saint  Cecilia's  body  rested  for  long.  This 
funeral  bed  was  strewn  with  flowers,  and  lighted  by  a 
few  flickering  lamps  ; — it  was  very  touching.  On  one 
side  is  an  altar,  where  several  Masses  were  said.  At 
this  moment  a  Cardinal,  of  noble  countenance,  was 
praying,  his  head  bent  upon  his  hands  resting  on 
the  altar;  we  knelt  down  behind  him,  and  so  did 
several  of  our  good  little  soldiers.  The  silence  and 
darkness  in  such  a  place  induced  great  emotion,  and 
a  solemn  feeling  of  recollection.  Little  Paul  gazed 
at  it,  almost  scared,  and  fearing  lest  the  excitement 
should  be  too  great  for  him,  his  mother  took  him 
away.  We  visited  galleries  and  chapels  containing 
paintings  with  which  we  are  familiar;  tombs,  rich 
sarcophagi  still  containing  bodies  intact.  When  we 
returned  to  the  light,  it  seemed  brighter,  more  golden, 
more  cheerful  than  before.  We  went  about  a  mile, 
beyond  the  tomb  of  Cecilia  Metella,  having  visited 
the  church  of  Saint  Sebastian.  The  Via  Appia,  the 
town  half  hid  behind  its  walls,  the  sacred  wood,  the 


220  POPE  PIO  NONO. 


Campagna,  with  its  long  lines  of  aqueducts,  and 
inclosed  with  mountains,  all  together  made  an  entranc 
ing  picture  beneath  that  light." 

"  Nov.  30/7*. — Vatican — the  library— what  treasures ! 
I  saw  the  Nozze  Aldobrandini  with  great  delight,  but 
above  all  I  was  excited  by  a  collection  of  pictures 
of  Giotto,  Gaddi,  Memmi,  and  others  of  the  same 
school,  gathered  together  by  Gregory  XVI.  The 
expression  of  strong  and  real  feeling  is  carried  in 
them  to  the  sublime  point." 

On  Sunday,  Dec.  6th,  Flandrin  and  his  family  were 
presented  to  the  Holy  Father.  "  We  arrived  at  the 
Vatican  at  two  o'clock,  but  were  not  admitted  into 
the  waiting-room  till  three ;  our  friends  the  Pichons 
with  us.  The  Holy  Father  received  us  kindly,  and 
in  a  really  fatherly  manner.  After  we  had  kissed  his 
foot  and  his  ring,  and  while  we  were  still  kneeling, 
he  pointed  to  my  wife  and  children  (as  distinguished 
from  our  friends  who  had  come  first),  and  asked, 
'These  are  your  family?  All  these  are  yours?'  and 
then,  laying  his  hand  on  Paul's  head,  he  added,  '  May 
God  bless  you  all.  May  your  children  give  you  every 
manner  of  comfort  by  being  good  children,  and 
growing  up  good  Catholics  and  good  citizens.'  Then 
he  blessed  our  rosaries  and  medals,  and  on  Auguste 
asking  for  a  blessing  on  the  Maison  d'Auteuil,  where 
he  has  been  educated,  the  Pope  answered,  reaching 


SAN  PIETRO  IN  VINCOLL  221 

out  his  hand,  '  C  e.'  Then  I  asked  him  to  bless  my 
painter's  work,  too,  and  he  answered  very  kindly,  '  I 
will  invoke  S.  Luke,  the  patron  of  painters.'  Then 
we  knelt  again,  and  went  away  to  make  room  for 
other  people." 

"Dec.  i  iM.— Went  to  San  Pietro  in  Vincoli.  Hear 
ing  that  the  holy  Apostle's  chains  were  to  be  shown  to 
some  people,  we  joined  them,  and  both  saw  and 
touched  the  saintly  relics.  A  young  Dominican, 
having  put  on  surplice  and  stole,  opened  an  iron  or 
bronze  chest  in  the  thickness  of  the  wall ;  then  several 
little  doors  in  succession ;  lifted  a  curtain,  then  a  veil 
covering  the  reliquary,  which  is  very  costly ;  opened 
the  reliquary  with  reverence,  and  displayed,  ring  by 
ring,  the  chains,  which  are  carefully  wrapped  in  fine 
linen.  We  began  to  hear  the  clink  of  metal,  and  at 
last,  by  degrees,  the  whole  of  the  chains  appeared. 
A  young  French  priest  came  forward  and  knelt  down ; 
he  kissed  them  in  the  official's  hands,  who  touched 
his  forehead  with  them,  and  put  the  collar  which  once 
fettered  S.  Peter's  neck  round  his.  Several  priests 
and  religious  came  up  successively;  men,  women,  and 
children  paying  a  like  homage  and  receiving  a  like 
reward.  It  was  a  very  touching  picture,  which 
brought  tears  to  my  eyes,  and  has  left  an  impression 
I  fain  would  keep." 

It  is  impossible  to  pass  over  the  cloud  which  mean- 


222  A  CADEMY  INNO  VA  TIONS. 

while  was  dimming  what  would  have  been  a  time  of 
so  much  enjoyment,  and  which  might  have  gone  far 
to  restore  health  to  Flandrin's  worn  physique.  It  was 
the  conscientious  devotion  which  he  always  entertained 
for  all  that  affected  the  growth  and  prosperity  of  high 
religious  art  in  France,  which  made  this  cloud  press 
so  darkly  upon  him.  There  had  been  a  series  of 
administrative  innovations  in  the  Academy  and  the 
Ecole  des  Beaux  Arts,  which  were  held  by  many,  and 
by  none  more  earnestly  than  Flandrin,  to  be  most 
damaging  to  the  cause  they  loved.  "  The  danger  is 
imminent,"  he  writes  to  M.  Baltard,  "  of  nullifying  the 
Academy  by  exercising  reforms,  which  have  no  better 
means  of  renovation  to  suggest  than  systems  (precedes) 
and  material  means.  The  professors  are  to  be  of 
painting,  sculpture,  etc.  The  Report  tells  you  why ; 
— systems  of  painting,  of  sculpture,  of  architecture, 
nothing  but  systems.  And  they  add,  with  respect  to 
the  teaching  of  the  old  school,  that  it  consists,  strictly 
speaking,  in  nothing  but  a  course  of  drawing  well.  I 
am  ready  to  maintain  that  the  school  had  at  least  the 
merit  of  recommending  and  of  pointing  out  what 
really  is  art,  and  the  whole  of  art.  It  is  by  drawing 
that  life  and  beauty  are  expressed,  the  most  exquisite 
delicacy,  the  truest  philosophy.  What  remains  after 
that  ?  A  garment,  which  I  am  far  from  despising,  but 
which  is  as  a  necessary  consequence  of  true  drawing 


VALUE  OF  DRAWING.  223 


in  high  art.1  And  then  they  talk  of  originality,  and 
formularise  it,  as  if  it  was  a  thing  that  can  be  taught. 
They  aim  at  organising  freedom  of  teaching  in  a 
school,  as  though  le  pour  et  le  contre  given  both  at 
once  could  create  anything  but  doubt !  I  believe  that 
there,  as  elsewhere,  it  is  a  duty  to  teach  nothing  save 
incontestible  truths,  or  at  least  such  as  are  upheld  by 
the  highest  examples,  and  endorsed  by  ages.  You 
may  be  certain  that  the  pupils  of  such  a  school  will 
mould  the  truths  of  their  own  day  to  these  noble 
traditions ;  and  there  you  have  a  promising  truth, 
because  it  is  the  product  of  real  liberty. 

"It  is  clear  affirmation  which  teaches,  not  doubt. 
Do  not  be  afraid  of  teaching  respect  and  veneration 
for  things  which  are  really  beautiful,  by  the  position 
assigned  to  them,  the  care  taken  of  them.  Let  it  be 
clearly  known  that  it  is  these  that  should  be  loved, 
admired,  honoured.  .  .  .  No,  indeed,  everything  is 

1  M.  Delaborde  remarks  that  this  opinion  of  Flandrin's  was 
no  less  unequivocally  that  of  Leonardo  da  Vinci  and  Poussin. 
Leonardo  says,  in  his  Treatise  on  Painting,  that  "  students  aiming 
at  rapid  progress  in  the  science  which  teaches  us  to  imitate  and 
represent  nature's  works,  should  devote  themselves  chiefly  to 
drawing."  And  his  biographer  writes  of  Poussin,  that  "as  he 
advanced,  he  devoted  himself  especially  to  beauty  of  form  and 
correct  drawing,  which  he  recognised  as  the  chief  point  in  paint 
ing,  and  for  which  the  greatest  painters  have  almost  forsaken 
everything  else  so  soon  as  they  understood  wherein  the  true  per 
fection  of  their  art  lies." 


224  FLANDRIN'S  VIEWS. 

not  equally  beautiful,  and  you  cannot  put  a  chef- 
d'ceuvre  of  Clodion  and  one  of  Phidias  in  the  same 
category,  as  men  affect  now  to  do." 

On  receiving  the  Report  announcing  the  proposed 
changes  in  the  constitution  of  the  French  Academy, 
Flandrin  wrote  to  M.  Ingres  : — "  It  was  the  very  day 
after  I  had  poured  out  to  you  all  my  delight  in  being 
here  again,  and  my  admiration  for  all  which  is  the 
raison  rfetre  of  our  dear  Academy,  that  I  received  the 
bad  news  of  these  measures,  which  will  upset  it  all, 
and  will,  I  greatly  fear,  ruin  our  schools.  Without 
entering  upon  a  criticism  of  the  Report,  I  want,  my 
dear  master,  to  tell  you  of  the  answer  I  have  felt 
bound  to  give  to  the  letter  in  which  the  Ministre  des 
Beaux  Arts  announced  the  suppression  of  our  func 
tions  at  the  £cole,  and  my  appointment  as  chef  d' atelier 
under  the  new  organisation.  There  were  more  sides 
than  one  to  the  question,  and  I  did  not  know  what 
was  going  on  in  Paris,  or  what  the  Institut  might  do. 
But,  all  the  same,  taking  counsel  with  what  seems  to 
be  the  honour  of  the  Academy  and  my  own,  I  answered 
His  Excellency  that  I  was  gratified  by  this  mark  of 
confidence,  but  that  I  had  combated  these  now  pre 
vailing  views  too  long  and  too  openly  to  be  able 
honourably  to  support  them  now.  ...  I  hope  and 
believe  that  you  are  on  the  same  side,  and  will  not 
disapprove  what  I  have  done." 


REFUSES  A  POST.  225 

By  the  same  post  Flandrin  wrote  to  M.  Gatteaux  : — 
"  For  the  last  ten  days  I  have  been  going  over  with 
delight  the  lessons  which  antiquity  and  the  great 
masters  afford  here.  Kindled  with  enthusiasm,  my 
respect  and  gratitude  was  increasing  for  the  admirable 
institution  of  Colbert  and  Louis  XIV. ;  for  this  school, 
which,  in  addition  to  the  study  of  these  chefs-tfauvre 
in  their  original  position,  combines  the  untold  benefit 
of  a  community  life,  enables  men  to  share  the  result 
of  their  studies  in  various  branches  of  art.  It  was 
just  when  I  was  more  convinced  than  ever  of  the 
value  of  these  things,  that  the  tidings  of  the  ruin  of  all 
our  grand  institutions  came  crushing  upon  me.  I  say 
the  ruin,  for  the  Report  which  leads  to  the  proposed 
changes  is  as  inexact  in  views  as  in  criticism,  and  I  do 
not  see  what  can  come  out  of  it  all  but  the  most  utter 
disruption  and  destruction.  May  I  be  mistaken." 

And  again  :  "  For  my  own  part,  I  could  not  hesitate 
a  moment.  I  perceived  the  chaos  about  to  ensue,  and 
I  have  refused  to  take  any  part  in  it.  This  dear 
Academic  cle  Rome,  to  which  I  have  returned  so 
lovingly,  has  also  received  a  mortal  blow.  The 
reduction  of  the  studentship  from  five  to  four  years, 
and  still  more  the  permission  to  students  only  to 
remain  two  years  in  Rome,  is  a  poison  which  will 
bring  down  its  strength,  and  lead  sooner  or  later  to  its 
suppression.  I  would  I  may  prove  mistaken  !  But  I 


226  TRUTH  IN  ART. 


must  say  it  again,  my  sorrow  is  all  the  greater  because 
my  enthusiasm  for  Rome  has  taken  still  deeper  root 
since  my  return  to  it.  Yes,  indeed,  Rome  is  a 
wondrous  place,  the  value  of  which  to  artists  I 
appreciate  more  than  ever  ! " 

Flandrin  began  to  write  on  the  subject,  but  with 
his  usual  modesty  he  refrained  from  publishing  his 
opinions  when  M.  Ingres  had  given  public  utterance 
to  the  views  of  the  conservative  party.  "  It  does  not 
beseem  me,"  he  wrote,  "  to  try  and  add  anything  to 
his  words."  The  notes  which  he  had  intended  to 
expand  remain,  containing  much  the  same  ideas  as 
those  expressed  in  the  letter  to  M.  Baltard,  quoted 
above.  He  repeats  still  more  energetically  : — "  It  is 
not  doubt  which  will  teach  men,  it  is  affirmation  of 
truth;  and  for  this  reason  I  will  take  no  part  in  a 
teaching  which  is  without  principle  or  belief.  Since  I 
have  the  happiness  of  believing,  I  will  not  say,  '  This 
may  be  beautiful,'  I  will  only  say,  '  This  is  beautiful/ 
without  having  other  influences,  superior  or  not, 
blowing  hot  and  cold,  now  on  the  right  hand,  now  on 
the  left,  upsetting  all  my  work." 

All  these  matters  were  no  mere  passing  interest 
or  subject  for  conversation  to  Flandrin — they  en 
grossed  his  mind  painfully ;  and  if  the  objects  of  art 
by  which  he  was  surrounded,  and  to  which  he  gave 
his  attention  by  day,  somewhat  distracted  him,  his 


SAN  G REG 0 RIO.  227 


nights  were  sleepless  and  troubled  by  the  urgency 
of  his  feelings.  "  The  surprise  and  real  grief  I  have 
been  feeling  these  last  few  days,"  he  writes,  "have 
upset  me  greatly.  Long  hours  of  sleeplessness 
weaken  me,  and  I  cannot  regain  strength."  On 
Christmas  Day  he  wrote  to  his  brother,  while  Madame 
Flandrin  and  her  children  were  at  Saint  Peter's, 
having  been  obliged  to  stay  away  himself  in  con 
sequence  of  his  suffering  condition ;  and  an  increas 
ingly  melancholy  tone  creeps  over  his  Journal  and 
letters  from  the  date  of  the  ill-omened  Report. 

"Dec.  \2th. — Went  with  Auguste  to  San  Gregorio. 
Domenichino's  fine  fresco  is  very  much  effaced,  but 
there  is  still  enough  to  authorise  one  in  saying  that  it 
is  his  finest  work.  The  grouping  has  all  the  grandeur 
of  antiquity,  and  the  drawing  is  in  accordance  with 
the  majesty  of  the  design.  We  also  saw  the  fine 
antique  white  marble  table  at  which  Saint  Gregory 
used  to  serve  twelve  poor  men.  Thence  we  went  to 
San  Paolo  and  Giovanni.  What  peace  and  stillness  ! 
and  how  entirely  one  can  understand  those  who  have 
wished  to  lie  there  for  their  last  sleep  ! " 

"  1 4///.— Walk  by  the  Ponte  Molle  to  the  Villa  del 
Papa  Giulio.  A  young  artillery  officer  was  very 
obliging  in  showing  it  to  us.  The  architectural  ideas 
are  fine,  and  the  paintings,  though  only  Zucchero's, 
afford  some  agreeable  results  and  useful  lessons.  We 


228  SOCIAL  CLAIMS. 

returned  by  the  Pincio  at  the  hour  when  I  have  so 
often  watched  the  sun  go  down  behind  Saint  Peter's." 

"15/7*.— To  the  Theatre  of  Marcellus,  and  San 
Bartolommeo,  where  I  was  greatly  delighted  with  a 
chapel  covered  with  frescoes  representing  the  life  of 
San  Carlo  Borromeo.  The  simplicity  of  composition, 
the  truth  of  action  and  expression,  and  the  lovely 
bits  of  landscape,  reminded  me  of  Domenichino.  It 
is  so  easy  and  skilful,  and  such  charming  colour. 
Whose  work  is  it?  I  must  find  out."1 

"i6//z. — Returned  with  Auguste,  to  prowl  about  San 
Bartolommeo,  where  the  exquisite  chapel  delighted 
me  more  and  more;  then  to  Monte  Aventino.  I 
tried  to  draw  there,  but  I  was  too  weary,  and  pains 
came  on  everywhere.  I  could  hardly  get  home." 

On  January  2,  1864,  Flandrin  writes  to  his  brother 
Paul  and  his  wife  : — "  Our  first  thought  yesterday  was 
for  you — then,  albeit  at  Rome,  one  had  to  think  about 
cards  and  visits.  I  began  with  our  Ambassador,  going 
with  the  Academy  and  its  Director  (I  like  still  to  feel 
myself  one  of  the  household),  then  to  General  de  Monte- 

bello,  etc.  To-day  we  dine  with  Madame  de ,  but 

the  dreadful,  destructive  part  of  the  business  is,  that  at 
every  house  to  which  one  goes  one  makes  five  or  six 
new  acquaintances,  involving  visits  to  be  received  and 

1  The  frescoes  in  question  are  by  Antonio  Caracci,  son  of 
Agostino  Caracci. 


EXPEDITIONS.  229 


returned,  and  all  that !  In  vain  we  try  to  keep  them  off 
— it  cannot  be  done.  It  would  be  less  of  a  burden  if  I 
were  well,  but  for  the  last  fortnight  I  have  had  pain 
in  my  head,  and  a  buzzing  in  my  ears,  which  reduce  me 
to  something  very  like  an  idiot !  My  intellect  is  about 
as  much  obstructed  as  my  hearing,  and  the  people 
who  want  to  make  acquaintance  with  this  '  celebrated 
artist '  must  be  somewhat  surprised  at  what  they  see 
of  him,  or  can  get  out  of  him.  Ci  vuole  pazienza  ! 
but  on  such  occasions  that  is  not  my  strong  point." 

"ROME,  Jan.  9,  1864. 

"  To-day,  in  fine  but  cold  weather,  wrapped  up  as 
if  we  were  going  off  to  Siberia,  we  went  in  an  open 
carriage  by  the  Corso,  the  Forum  and  San  Giovanni 
in  Laterano,  stopping  to  admire  the  view  you  remem 
ber  in  front  of  the  church.  For  the  last  week  the 
mountains  have  been  white  with  snow — Monte  Cavo 
covered  from  summit  to  base.  But  it  was  glorious 
under  that  bright  sunshine.  From  the  Albano  road, 
a  little  short  of  the  Tavolata,  we  turned  up  to  the  left, 
along  a  way  which  formerly  was  only  to  be  distin 
guished  by  a  few  tumuli,  which  I  remember  well ;  but 
during  the  last  five  years,  some  slight  excavations 
have  easily  brought  the  old  pavement  to  light.  Most 
interesting  tombs  have  been  found  on  either  side; 
two  especially  delighted  us,  not  only  from  their  good 


230  LITTLE  PAUL. 


preservation,  but  from  the  character  of  their  rich 
decoration.  I  don't  think  finer  specimens  of  this 
kind  of  monument  can  be  found  anywhere.  We  were 
deeply  impressed,  and  little  Paul,  who  had  been  lost  in 
gazing  with  open  mouth,  suddenly  exclaimed  to  him 
self  as  we  reascended  the  steps  which  led  to  daylight : 
1  O pour  le  coup,  ced  est  beau  /'  Indeed,  his  enthusiasm 
for  antiquity  goes  so  far  that  he  looks  upon  the  day  as 
lost  which  is  not  devoted  to  the  Campagna,  or  the  build 
ings  or  excavations  in  Rome, — everything  else  is  a  mere 
accessory.  Nothing  can  be  more  comic  than  to  hear  him 
declaiming  archaeology  and  history  in  the  kitchen, 
classifying  the  buildings  of  the  Republic,  drawing  his 
inductions  from  this  or  that  style  of  construction. 
When  he  does  not  know  anything  about  it,  he  invents 
— nothing  stops  him,  c'est  a  pouffer !  But  he  is  not 
quite  so  keen  and  energetic  when  he  has  really  got  to 
learn  something.  It  was  quite  a  fete-day,  for  in  the 
evening  we  went  al  nobile  teatro  d*  Apollo,  where  we 
had  Verdi's  Trovatore,  and  the  ballet  of  Cristofo 
Colombo,  where  I  came  once  more  upon  the  panto 
mime  and  costume  which  used  to  amuse  us  so  much 
of  old.  Oh,  the  Court  of  King  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella,  and  the  Turks,  such  as  could  by  no  possi 
bility  be  found  anywhere  but  here  !  I  beg  Rome's 
pardon,  but  you  see,  fortunately,  she  has  other  merits 
than  these  ! " 


FRENCH  SOLDIERS,  231 

"Jan.  14,  1864. — We  are  almost  as  much  plagued 
here  as  at  Paris  !  the  numbers  of  people  with  whom 
we  have  been  obliged  to  make  acquaintance  are  past 
telling.  One  was  obliged  to  go  to  the  Academy,  the 
Embassy,  and  General  de  Montebello,  command 
ing  our  army,  and  out  of  these  three  roots  a  thousand 
branches  have  sprung.  You  are  introduced  to  M. 
or  Mme.  So-and-So;  they  call  upon  you,  you  must 
return  the  visit,  and  the  number  of  these  new  acquaint 
ance  is  so  great  that  I  really  do  not  know  half  the 
people  again ; — it  is  a  real  worry,  and  not  one  of  our 
own  seeking  I  can  assure  you ;  but  how  can  we  help 
it  ?  You  know  how  I  care  for  our  soldiers, — the  sight 
of  our  flag,  especially  in  a  foreign  land,  is  quite  a 
religious,  sacred  attraction  for  me.  There  are  so 

many  here I  often  admire  their  vigour  and 

life;  and  it  is  an  edifying  sight  too  to  see  them  filling  the 
Church  of  Saint  Louis,  and  listening  to  their  chaplain 
(who,  by  the  way,  is  worthy  of  his  mission)  with  a 
respect  and  attention  which  move  me  greatly. 

"  You  ask,  dear  Paul,  whether  I  have  found  any  of 
our  traces  in  the  Coliseum?  No.  A  great  deal  has 
been  done  which  somewhat  interferes  with  the  pic 
turesque,  but  which  anyhow  tends  to  support  and 
preserve  the  venerable  ruin.  The  arcades  you  allude 
to  have  been  closed  by  walls.  This  morning  I  went 
to  the  Academy  by  the  Salita.  The  Pincio  was  nearly 


232  FAILING  HEALTH. 

deserted,  the  sky,  intersected  with  long  streaky  clouds, 
bore  a  melancholy  expression,  and  mist  hung  over  the 
town ;  and  amidst  the  vague  sounds  which  rose  from 
it,  the  sound  of  a  bell,  which  I  seemed  to  remember, 
carried  me  back  with  a  wonderful  illusion  to  the  days 
when  we  were  never  apart,  and  had  all  things  in  com 
mon.  O  dear  old  fellow,  if  you  only  knew  how  I 
want  you  at  every  turn!  The  thought  of  my  happi 
ness  in  seeing  you  again  is  my  only  consolation  when 
the  prospect  of  our  departure  from  Rome,  which 
begins  to  loom  in  the  distance,  comes  before  me. 
What  is  the  fascination  this  land  possesses,  that  it  takes 
such  a  hold  on  all  who  are  happy  enough  to  love  what 
is  beautiful  ?" 

That  happy  meeting  was  not  to  take  place  in  this 
world.  Although  his  family  and  friends  do  not  appear 
to  have  been  alarmed,  it  is  evident  that,  in  spite  of  his 
enjoyment  of  "dear  Rome"  and  her  many  interests, 
Flandrin's  health  was  growing  worse,  and  that  only  his 
energy  and  unselfishness  prevented  it  from  becoming 
more  perceptible.  He  writes  to  his  brother  Paul : — 

'•'•Jan.  28,  1864. — .  .  .  .  After  spending  some  time 
at  San  Giorgio  in  Velabro,  I  came  away  with  a  chill 
which  I  cannot  shake  off:  cold,  neuralgia,  fever; 
neuralgia  in  the  face  so  painful  that  I  did  not  know 
what  would  become  of  me.  I  was  half  blind,  half  deaf, 
a  very  miserable  sort  of  being  indeed.  I  have  been 


CLINGING  TO  ROME. 


rather  better  since  yesterday,  and  mean  to  go  out 
again  ;  the  weather  is  inviting,  it  has  become  so  warm, 
which  indeed  has  its  own  dangers.  Why  is  my  health 
no  better  ?  I  often  wonder  at  it, — ma  d  vuole  pazienza, 
that  is  the  surest  of  all  remedies. 

"  Since  I  wrote  last  we  have  hardly  made  any  dis 
tant  expeditions.  We  go  over  churches,  palaces,  and 
galleries  again  and  again,  and  in  spite  of  the  long  time 
I  spent  here  formerly,  I  find  much  that  is  altogether 
new  to  me,  and  undoubtedly  I  shall  still  leave  much 
unseen.  My  regret  at  leaving  Rome  is  so  great,  that 
I  have  to  comfort  myself  with  a  secret  hope  of  return 
ing.  I  do  not  resist  the  hope,  for  it  strengthens  me, 
and  what  hope  shows  to  be  possible  for  me,  it  proves 
possible  for  you  too.  So  don't  let  us  despair,  but  let 
us  fill  our  time  in  the  best  way  and  with  the  best 
things  we  can." 

In  his  Journal  the  same  constant  sufferings  appear. 

"  Palazzo  Spada — cold  fearful.  Palazzo  Farnese — 
the  King  of  Naples  not  yet  gone  out,  and  we  are  told 
to  return,  but  I  was  in  too  much  pain.  ...  I  am 
almost  blind  and  deaf.  I  went  to  the  Pincio  alone. 
It  is  sad  not  to  see  this  bright  sunshine.  Everything 
seems  confused  and  uncertain.  .  .  .  What  a  wondrous 
expression  of  grandeur  and  melancholy  there  is  in 
the  Roman  Campagna  !  It  is  very  different  in  fine 
weather,  but  this  is  quite  as  eloquent.  ..." 


234  LISZT. 

The  Carnival  came  on  with  heavy  snow,  and  on  Ash- 
Wednesday,  Feb.  loth,  it  fell  and  lay  on  the  ground 
even  in  Rome  itself.  "In  the  plains  and  on  the 
mountains,'*  Flandrin  says,  "  it  is  like  Siberia,  and 
my  rheumatism  does  not  like  that,  or  rather  I  don't 
like  it,  for  I  am  still  deaf  and  stupid.  I  can  only 
hope  that  it  will  not  last." 

"Feb.  17,  1864.— My  dear  Paul,—.  ...  We  shall 
really  have  enjoyed  our  absence  very  much,  in  spite 
of  my  bad  health,  in  spite  of  le  monde,  and  in  spite  of 
the  weather,  which  has  been  very  bad  for  the  last 
fortnight.  I  told  you  before  that  we  had  made 
acquaintance  with  the  Princess  Czartoryska,  who  is 
good,  pious,  simple,  and  a  wondrous  musician.  The 
other  day  we  went  with  her  to  Monte  Mario  to  see 
Liszt,  who  lives  there  in  retirement.  He  received  us 
very  kindly,  and  after  we  had  rested  a  few  minutes  in 
the  humble  room  he  occupies  in  the  convent,  he  took 
us  to  the  Villa  Mellini.  It  was  the  first  time  I  have 
seen  Rome  from  thence,  and  I  am  not  sure  but  that 
it  is  the  best  view." 

"  Feb.  26th. — .  ...  I  have  done  nothing  for  so  long, 
and  the  consequence  is  a  mistrust  of  myself  which 
becomes  downright  weakness.  I  want  to  test  by 
some  real  work  the  true  state  of  the  case.  The  last 
few  days  I  have  been  trying  to  make  some  studies, 
but  it  is  very  difficult  to  manage  one's  model  in  a 


MGR.  DUPANLOUP.  235 

sunny  room,  where  one's  family  is  perpetually  on  the 
move,  and  I  shall  accomplish  but  little.  Meanwhile 
the  anxiety  about  the  Pope's  portrait  presses  ;  every 
body  speaks  to  me  of  it  as  of  a  thing  in  hand  already, 
and  my  present  attitude  of  reserve,  excuse,  and 
apology  is  untenable.  The  weather  is  detestable  ;  it 
has  rained  more  or  less  continually  for  five  weeks. 
We  have  hardly  had  four  or  five  tolerable  days  out  of 
more  than  thirty  ;  and  moreover  this  poor  country  is 
afflicted  with  numerous  crimes.  People  talk  of  eleven 
attempts  at  assassination  during  the  last  fortnight,  of 
which  some,  unhappily,  have  been  only  too  successful ; 
and  as  to  robberies,  they  are  endless,  and  committed 
with  incredible  effrontery  in  church  and  house  in  broad 
daylight.  .  .  .  Ah,  our  times  were  better  than  these  ! 
One  thing  which  has  interested  me  more  pleasantly 
has  been  hearing  Mgr.  Dupanloup's  sermons  in  the 
Gesu.  They  were  admirable,  and  the  immense  con 
gregation  testified  its  respect  and  admiration  by  the 
most  constant  attention  and  ever  increasing  numbers. 
All  this  bad  weather  is  a  great  hindrance  to  us,  we 
lose  so  much  time,  in  spite  of  our  efforts  to  use  it  well, 
and  it  really  is  unfortunate,  for  we  have  still  a  thou 
sand  things  to  do.  Time  rushes  away  rapidly  ;  we 
have  almost  come  to  Easter,  and  if  I  am  to  do  any 
work  this  year  I  must  soon  set  about  it." 

The  only  paintings  which  Flandrin  executed  during 


236  PERE  BESSON. 


this  winter  in  Rome  were  an  unfinished  portrait  of 
his  little  son  Paul,  and  two  angels'  heads,  as  studies  for 
the  decorations  he  had  been  asked  to  undertake  in 
the  new  Church  of  Saint  Augustine  in  Paris,  which 
his  friend  M.  Baltard  was  at  that  time  building.  He 
also  made  a  drawing  for  a  portrait  of  Madame 
Flacheron.  But,  independently  of  all  the  circum 
stantial  difficulties  which  surrounded  him,  Flandrin's 
health  was  a  daily  increasing  hindrance. 

"  My  incapacity  for  work  distresses  me  grievously," 
he  writes  to  M.  Timbal,  on  February  29th,  "but 
Rome  is  always  Rome  !  Yesterday,  after  a  visit  to 
Overbeck,  who  seemed  to  me  younger  and  more  alive 
than  he  was  thirty  years  ago,  we  went  with  a  French 
religious  of  the  order  of  Saint  Francis  to  study  the 
Forum  and  its  environs.  There  were  four  or  five 
inches  of  mud,  but  a  ray  of  sunshine  broke  through 
the  clouds,  and  everything  resumed  its  wonted  charm. 
The  trees  in  the  gardens  of  San  Gregorio  showed  their 
white  blossom  for  the  first  time." 

On  two  successive  days,  March  ist  and  2nd,  Flandrin 
went  to  San  Sisto,  to  study  Pere  Besson's  paintings, 
which  pleased  him  greatly;  he  notices  their  good 
composition  and  fulness  of  expression,  and  remarks 
that  the  medallions  in  grisaille  "  contain  things  of 
deep  pathos  and  of  an  eloquent  severity." 

There   is   something   touching  in  reading  of  this, 


COMING  DEPARTURE.  237 

almost  Flandrin's  last  expedition  in  matters  of  art, 
being  connected  with  one  who,  like  himself,  though 
after  a  different  manner,  had  devoted  his  talents  and 
his  life  to  God. 

The  last  among  his  letters  is  to  Paul  Flandrin.  He 
talks  in  it  of  "  the  coming  departure ; "  and  truly  that 
was  at  hand,  but  not  such  as  he  expected. 

"  ROME,  March  5,  1864. 

"  I  am  better,  but  still  I  cannot  get  my  head  right. 
My  ears  are  stuffed,  and  I  am  strangely  wearied  by  a 
continual  dull  noise  in  them.  But  this  time  no  one 
can  say  that  I  have  overdone  myself;  I  have  done 
nothing,  hindered  as  I  have  been  by  various  difficulties, 
and  now  our  departure  is  close  at  hand  !  Anyhow  we 
have  seen  and  re-seen  Rome  well,  and  I  cannot  tell 
you  the  lengths  to  which  my  fanaticism  about  her 
extend  !  Everything  charms  me,  touches  me,  and  fills 
me  with  an  intense  desire  to  stay  here.  Of  late  we 
have  been  smitten  with  a  special  admiration  for  the 
regions  lying  between  the  Capitol  and  the  Tiber,  and 
the  Porta  San  Paolo,  San  Sebastiano,  Latina,  and  San 
Giovanni,  that  is  to  say,  for  that  part  of  Rome  which 
comprehends  the  Aventine,  Ccelian,  and  Palatine  hills, 
and  the  valleys  dividing  them.  These  grand  ruins,  con 
vents,  and  solitary  venerable  old  churches,  all  raised 
to  recall  the  greatest  events  or  the  most  touching 


238  OSTIA. 


memories  of  early  Christianity,  have  a  heart-searching 
eloquence  which  I  would  fain  never  forget. 

"  Yesterday  Auguste  and  I  (my  poor  wife  was  ill) 
went  with  M.  Visconti,  the  antiquary,  and  some  other 
people,  to  see  the  excavations,  which  have  been 
making  for  some  years  in  the  site  of  the  ancient 
Ostia.  We  went  in  a  little  open  carriage.  It  was  a 
fine  day,  and  the  Piazza  Montanara  was  full  of  pic 
turesque  peasants ;  on  to  Bocca  della  Verita  and  Ripa 
Grande,  where  we  turned  to  enjoy  the  beautiful  view 
of  Rome,  of  which  you  made  a  very  good  sketch. 
Coasting  Monte  Testaccio,  we  passed  the  Porta  San 
Paolo,  beside  which  the  Pyramid  of  Caius  Sextius 
rises ;  a  little  further  on  we  saluted  the  chapel  com 
memorating  the  parting  embrace  of  Saint  Peter  and 
Saint  Paul,  then  the  great  Basilica  of  Saint  Paul,  and 
then  at  last  came  out  upon  the  bare,  lonely  Campagna, 
which  stretched  out  in  familiar  sameness  to  the  sea. 
Stopping  a  few  minutes  at  the  Osteria  Malafede  to 
rest  the  horses,  our  six  carriages  resumed  their  way ; 
the  Tiber  widens,  the  marshes  extend,  the  salt  pool 
begins,  and  far  off  rises  the  castle  with  its  magnificent 
pine  tree,  which  you  must  remember  well.  We 
came  nearly  to  the  sea-level,  cross  the  Salini.  On  the 
left  the  fine  fir  wood  of  Castel  Fusano  stands  out,  and 
besides  the  four  or  five  houses  which  compose  Ostia 
there  is  a  little  church,  which  recalls  memories  of 


EXCA  VA  TIONS.  239 


Saint  Augustine  and  Saint  Monica.  After  breakfasting 
at  the  Osteria,  we  went  to  the  excavations,  which  are 
most  exceedingly  curious.  One  goes  in  by  the  street 
of  tombs — the  pavement  is  complete.  You  still  see 
the  ruts  hollowed  by  the  chariot-wheels.  It  is  lined 
with  interesting  buildings.  Then  at  the  gate  to  which 
it  leads,  you  find  a  corps  de  garde  and  custom 
house,  after  which  you  get  into  the  town,  divided 
into  several  streets.  Thence  you  have  about  a  mile 
to  go  above  ground  to  the  further  extremity  of  the 
ancient  Ostia,  where  the  other  range  of  excavations 
is  going  on,  the  intention  being  for  the  two  lines  to 
meet  in  the  centre.  It  is  on  this  side  that  the  baths, 
temples,  the  shops  which  used  to  line  the  quays  and 
port,  are  found,  decorated  with  paintings,  and  very 
good  and  well  preserved  mosaics.  This  excursion 
was  made  much  more  interesting  and  useful  by  M. 
Visconti's  explanations  as  we  passed  from  point  to 
point 

"Our  return,  from  three  to  six  o'clock,  just  at  the 
most  beautiful  part  of  the  day,  was  quite  delightful. 
The  grand  and  lofty  points  of  view  were  enhanced  by 
the  flocks  with  their  lambs  and  colts,  and  by  the 
abundant  flowers.  Everything  seemed  to  be  crying 
out,  Spring  is  coming !  I  must  confess  to  you  that 
I  was  quite  overcome,  and  I  can  see  a  tear  of  sym 
pathy  fall  from  your  eyes.  Adieu,  my  Paul.  Kiss 


240  SPRING. 


Aline  and  the  little  ones  fondly  for  us ;  we  love  you 
so  dearly. — Your  devoted  brother  and  friend." 

We  need  scarcely  ask  to  be  forgiven  for  a  repetition 
of  the  latter  description,  in  words  nearly  identical, 
when  we  say  that  they  are  the  last  Flandrin  ever 
wrote  in  his  Journal : — "  It  was  three  o'clock,  and  so 
too  late  for  Castel  Fusano,  and  we  took  the  road  to 
Rome,  turning  towards  the  mountains,  and  leaving  the 
sea  behind  us.  Cest  la  belle  heure.  A  soft  sunshine 
made  the  whole  world  glad  with  its  light.  Flocks 
wandered  in  every  direction,  animated  by  the  little 
ones — calves,  foals,  and  lambs.  The  fruit-trees  were 
laden  with  blossom,  the  hawthorn  was  bursting  into 
flower,  and  all  this  grace,  this  youth,  this  resurrection, 
on  the  stern  soil  of  the  Campagna,  had  an  inexpres 
sible  charm  of  contrast  which  was  exquisitely  pathetic 
and  touching." 

Pathetic  indeed  !  yet  not  more  so  than  the  last 
loving  looks  of  the  Christian  painter,  seeing  all  things 
through  the  Vision  of  Beauty,  which  comes  from  Him 
Alone  Who  is  the  King  of  all  Beauty,  the  Monarch  of 
all  true  art,  the  Lord  before  Whom  every  treasure  of 
intellect,  brain,  hand,  or  heart,  must  be  laid  and 
hallowed  ere  it  can  attain  its  true  object — the  benefit 
and  enlightenment  of  man.  But  a  few  days  later,  and 
Hippolyte  Flandrin  was  to  enter  the  dark  valley, 


LAST  ILLNESS.  241 


whence  he  should  indeed  "  leave  the  troubled  sea  of 
life  behind,  and  turn  to  the  mountains  " — the  Golden 
Hills  "  whence  cometh  my  help."  The  soft  sunshine 
of  his  beloved  Italy  would  beam  on  him  no  more,  but 
he  was  soon  to  enter  there  where  the  Sun  of  Righteous 
ness  is  the  light ;  his  eyes,  "  dazzled  now  and  weak," 
were  soon  about  to — 

"  See  the  King's  full  glory  break, 
Nor  from  the  blissful  vision  shrink  : 
In  fearless  love  and  hope  uncloyed, 
For  ever  on  that  ocean  bright 
Empowered  to  gaze,  and  undestroyed, 
Deeper  and  deeper  plunge  in  light." 

He  had  struggled  hard  with  failing  health  and 
strength  ;  a  vivid  sense  of  duty  had  upheld  him  from 
giving  way  to  the  infirmities  which  were  making  his 
"  clay  cottage  to  totter  ere  it  fail." 

Immediately  after  this  expedition  to  Ostia,  Flandrin 
became  more  seriously  ill.  "  We  were  waiting  for 
fine  weather  to  go  to  Naples  and  Pompeii,"  he  wrote ; 
"  the  fine  weather  has  come,  but  our  plans  have  given 
way  before  my  illness,  and  now  everything  is  un 
certain." 

Not  for  long  was  the  uncertainty.  A  few  days  more, 
and  the  distressing  symptoms,  which  at  first  seemed  only 
an  aggravation  of  what  he  had  suffered  for  months  past, 
developed  into  smallpox.  It  was  not  a  very  severe 

attack,  and  on  the  sixth  day  after  the  malady  appeared 
Q 


242  IN  P ATRIA. 


Flandrin  was  better,  he  took  some  food,  and  all 
seemed  to  be  going  on  well. 

"  Yesterday"  (so  writes  a  student  of  the  Academy, 
M.  Bourgaux,  to  Ambroise  Thomas)  "  I  went  to  his 
house  at  five  o'clock,  and  found  him  in  his  last  agony, 
while,  sad  to  say,  his  family  had  no  idea  that  death  was 
so  close  at  hand.  The  servants  had  sent  for  an  Italian 
priest,  who,  on  arriving,  said  that  extreme  unction 
should  be  instantly  administered.  That  was  just  when 
I  happened  to  come,  and  I  ran  hastily  to  a  neighbour 
ing  church  to  summon  the  last  succours  of  the  Church 
to  the  dying.  Two  hours  later  he  was  dead." 

The  last  words  he  uttered  betokened  how  the  faith 
which  had  moulded  and  strengthened  his  life  now 
sustained  and  brightened  his  deathbed.  "  I  see  the 
road,  a  saint  is  leading  me  !"  he  whispered  in  faint 
accents  shortly  before  his  death  ;  "  I  see  the  road,  it  is 
made  ready ! " 

The  silver  cord  was  loosed  and  the  golden  bowl 
broken,  and  the  weary  spirit  had  found  rest  for  ever 

IN  PATRIA. 

A  little  later  and  the  painter  returned  to  Saint 
Germain  des  Pres,  where  his  work  was  yet  unfinished, 
yet  all  his  earnest  aspirations  were  fulfilled.  His 
earthly  remains  rest  there,  where  his  own  brush  ha? 
raised  his  best  monument. 


FAREWELL.  243 


A  few  earnest  words  spoken  by  M.  Beule  at  Hippo- 
lyte  Flandrin's  funeral  may  be  quoted  here. 

"  We  have  lost,"  the  speaker  said,  "  we  have  lost 
one  after  another,  in  rapid  succession,  Ary  Scheffer, 
Delaroche,  Decamps,  Horace  Vernet,  Delacroix,  and 
now  Flandrin — the  youngest,  but  not  the  least  im 
portant;  Flandrin,  who  was  revered  by  all  opposing 
parties ;  Flandrin,  who  upheld  the  standard  of  the  ideal 
and  of  religious  art  with  a  hand  as  modest  as  it  was 
firm  ;  Flandrin,  whose  bright  talent,  always  advancing, 
rising  year  by  year  to  a  more  radiant  height,  seemed 
only  as  yet  in  its  first  bloom  !  What  works  he  was 
about  to  complete,  or  to  begin  !  What  immortal  pages 
were  yet  to  be  written  on  the  walls  of  Saint  Germain 
des  Pre's  and  of  the  Cathedral  at  Strasburg  !  What  a 
fertile  maturity  lay  before  him  !  ...  It  were  not 
seemly,  amid  these  funeral  rites,  to  dwell  upon  Flan 
drin's  life  or  his  works.  .  .  .  Let  us  only  say  a  long 
farewell  to  the  earthly  remains  which  Rome  would 
fain  have  gathered  in  with  those  of  Claude  Lorraine 
and  Poussin,  but  which  now  the  sanctuary  of  Saint 
Germain  des  Pres  possesses.  Ever  present  to  our 
memory  must  be  that  gentle,  melancholy,  recollected 
face,  which  seemed  to  belong  to  one  of  a  bygone  age  ; 
to  a  Christian  neophyte  painting  the  Catacombs,  or  a 
mediaeval  artist  decorating  his  monastic  chapel  with 
inexhaustible  fervour.  Flandrin  was  moved  by  a 


244  IN  MEMORIAM. 


sincere  piety,  which  knew  no  display,  but  shone 
brightly  within  ;  it  was  the  source  of  all  his  pure, 
lovely  inspirations,  wherein  the  utmost  simplicity  of 
feeling  was  backed  by  profound  science  ;  wherein  the 
purity  of  antique  form  was  united  to  that  of  Christian 
spirituality.  He  had  another  rare  creed  which  alone 
can  make  a  great  artist;  he  believed  in  the  dignity 
of  his  art,  in  those  unchangeable  principles  without 
which  there  is  no  beauty,  in  rules  to  which  the 
loftiest  intellect  must  submit,  and  hence  the  exquisite 
simplicity  and  unity  of  his  life." 

And  in  the  few  feeling  words  broken  by  emotion 
which  Ambroise  Thomas,  that  dear  friend  of  so  many 
years,  added  to  those  already  spoken,  he  quotes  a 
letter  he  had  received  from  a  young  student : — "  Say 
that  those  who  only  knew  him  at  the  last  are  not  the 
last  to  regret  him;  say  that  there  was  never  a  day 
when  his  heart  did  not  win  other  hearts  by  the  warm 
outpourings  of  his  lovingkindness ;  say  that  many  a 
young  artist  carries  about  for  ever  in  his  memory,  the 
friendly  words  which  were  suggested  by  his  inex 
haustible  sympathy  for  the  young,  and  his  immense 
love  for  his  art." 

a.  a.  P. 


MTIR  AND  PATERSON,   PRINTERS,  EDINBURGH. 


ate  recall. 


R 

DEC"   D 

LOAN 


-— -^ 

" 


U.  C.  BERKELEY  LIBRAR 


